imsipm 


NEAR  EAST 
' '  WITHIN 


^    ^    ^ 


Peter   1.  of  Servia 


L{j  .ikUP^'dL 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA   SAN  DIEGO 


3  1822  02624  6595 


GEISEL  LIBRARY 

fiNjVERSITY  Of  CALIFORNIA,  SAN  OttGQ 

LA  JOUA.  CAUFORNIA 


THE  NEAR  EAST  FROM  WITHIN 


The  Near  East 
from  within 


BX 

*  *  *  * 


With  Thirteen  Photogravure  Illustrations 


NEW    YORK 

FUNK  AND  WAGNALLS  COMPANY 


PREFACE 

TT  has  so  happened  that  many  years  of  my  hfe  have  been 
-'-  spent  in  the  by-paths  of  European  pohtics.  At  times  a 
silent  observer,  not  seldom  a  mere  cog  in  the  great  wheel, 
or  again,  entrusted  with  operations  of  diplomatic  moment, 
circumstances  made  me  acquainted  with  the  mysteries 
and  under-currents  of  political  life  and  of  diplomatic 
intrigue  in  many  parts  of  the  world.  Latterly,  things 
which  I  did  not  understand  seem  to  have  become  clear. 
Events,  the  significant  purport  of  which  I  did  not  earlier 
realise,  now  stand  out  vivid  and  strong  from  the  chambers 
of  my  memory.  Trifles  have  become  invested  with  prime 
importance. 

When  the  war  broke  out  it  seemed  my  duty  to  remain 
silent.  It  were  of  little  avail  to  add  to  the  bitterness  and 
hatred  which  sounded  on  every  hand.  Yet  I  had  many 
a  debate  with  myself  as  to  how  far  loyalty  demanded  a 
veiling  of  matters  which,  once  made  known,  would  throw 
into  truer  focus  the  inner  history  of  the  Balkan  and  allied 
Eastern  troubles,  and  their  root  causes,  during  the  last 
twenty  years. 

Rightly  or  wrongly,  I  arrived  at  the  decision  that  my 
greater  duty  was  to  mankind  rather  than  to  a  man. 

Hence  these  imipressions  of  Eastern  affairs  as  observed 
in  the  course  of  my  passing  from  capital  to  capital,  and  as 


Preface 

told  me  by  one  or  other  of  certain  people  who  were 
active  in  propagating  the  influence  of  their  respective 
Governments. 

Whether  I  shall  succeed  in  capturing  the  interest  of 
the  reader  is  not  for  me  to  say.  The  only  thing  which  I 
can  assure  those  who  read  the  pages  that  follow  is,  that 
whereas  they  perhaps  may  find  several  matters  to  shock 
or  distress,  they  will  not  come  across  any  that  are 
consciously  exaggerated. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

1.  Sultan    Abdul    Hamid  :     His    Personality    and 
Policy   ....... 


2.  Life  in  Constantinople        .... 

3.  Sultan  Mohammed  V.  . 

4.  Enver  Pasha        ...... 

5.  Russian  Influence  in  Constantinople 

6.  German  Prestige  in  the  Near  East    . 

7.  Ambassadors  at  the  Sublime  Porte    . 

8.  The  Sheikh-ul-Islam  and  Religious  Fanaticism 

9.  Khedive  Abbas  Hilmi  .... 

10.  Emperor  William  II.  and  the  Tsar     . 

11.  King  Carol  of  Roumania     .... 

12.  Impressions  of  Bucharest   .... 

13.  The  German  Emperor  at  Konopischt 

14.  Servia  in  the  'Eighties        .... 

15.  Alexander  of  Servia  and  Queen  Draga     . 

16.  Servia  under  King  Peter   .... 

17.  A  Russian's  Opinion     . 

18.  Rival  Influences  in  Greece 


1 

28 

37 

51 

62 

72 

86 

99 

106 

115 

123 

136 

145 

152 

163 

174 

185 

193 


viii  Contents 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

19.  The  Failure  of  German  Intrigue  in  Montenegro     201 

20.  Tsar  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria       .         .         .         .213 

21.  The  History  of  a  Conversion     ....     222 

22.  The  Persuading  of  Turkey  ....     230 

23.  Egypt  in  the  Balance  .....     239 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Peter  I.  of  Servla.    . 

Sultan  Abdul  Hamid 

Sultan  Mohammed  V. 

Sultan  Hussein  Kemal  of  Egypt 

Khedive  Abbas  Hilmi 

Ferdinand  I.  of  Roumania 

Carol  I.  of  Roumania 

Prince  George  of  Servia 

Crown  Prince  Alexander  of  Servia 

CONSTANTIN    I.    OF    GrEECE    . 

George  I.  of  Greece 
Nicholas  I.  of  Montenegro 
Ferdinand  I.  of  Bulgaria 


Frontispiece 

FACINQ    PAGE 
40 


40 
110 
110 
138 
138 
180 
180 
198 
198 
210 
218 


THE  NEAR  EAST   FROM  WITHIN 

CHAPTER   I 

SULTAN  ABDUL  HAMID  :   HIS  PERSONALITY  AND  POLICY 

TN  my  goings  to  and  fro  among  the  cities  of  Europe 
-*-  it  was  my  lot  to  visit  Constantinople  on  several 
occasions.  The  first  time  was  in  1888,  and  by  good 
fortune  I  saw  Abdul  Hamid  the  very  next  day  after  my 
arrival  —  one  Friday  —  during  his  weekly  visit  to  the 
Mosque.  Certain  friends  of  mine  secured  for  me  a  place 
whence  I  could  see  this  ceremony  of  the  Selamlik,  as  the 
procession  of  the  Sultan  is  called. 

Promptly  at  the  arranged  hour  we  arrived  at  the 
little  landing-place  of  Beshiktash,  close  by  the  mosque 
of  the  same  name.  This  landing-stage  is  quite  small,  but 
has  the  advantage  of  being  near  to  Yildiz  Kiosk,  the 
home  of  the  Sultan.  We  were  received  by  a  master  of 
ceremonies,  who  placed  at  our  disposal  a  private  room, 
forming  part  of  a  guard-house.  From  this  vantage-point 
we  could  see  the  procession  as  it  defiled  past  our  windows 
into  the  square  which  fronts  the  mosque. 

It  was  a  pompous  sight,  not  devoid  of  quaintness, 
but  far  less  Oriental  than  I  had  been  led  to  imagine. 


2  The  Near  East  from  Within 

The  Sultan  himself  was  riding  a  white  horse  harnessed 
in  Eastern  style,  but  he  was  so  surrounded  by  eunuchs, 
guards,  and  high  officials  that  I  could  scarcely  catch  a 
glimpse  of  his  impassive,  dark  face.  As  he  was  leaving 
the  mosque,  however,  I  had  better  fortune.  He  stood 
for  a  few  minutes  on  its  threshold,  gazing  at  the  troops 
which  marched  before  him  with  an  earnest,  severe  expres- 
sion in  his  eyes  that  irresistibly  attracted  my  attention. 

Abdul  Hamid  did  not  impress  me  as  either  pre- 
possessing or  imposing,  for  his  figure  was  bent  and  there 
was  little  regality  in  his  countenance.  But  for  all  that, 
his  was  one  of  those  faces  that  cannot  fail  to  seize  upon 
the  imagination.  There  was  such  a  sense  of  power,  such 
a  conviction  of  an  unlimited  right  of  life  and  death  over 
those  who  surrounded  him,  that  even  strangers  unaware 
of  his  identity  seldom  mistook  him  for  anyone  else  than 
the  Sultan. 

It  has  often  been  said  that  Abdul  Hamid  was  a 
tyrant.  I  do  not  believe  it.  He  lacked  the  backbone  of 
a  tyrant.  He  could  be  guilty  of  surpassing  cruelty,  but 
more  from  the  continually  haunting  fear  of  assassination 
than  from  inherent  wickedness. 

His  early  impressions  had  been  utterly  sad,  and  the 
first  years  of  his  life — spent,  as  the\'  had  been,  in  semi- 
imprisonment — had  made  him  naturally  distrustful  of 
everybody  and  everything. 

I  learned  more  of  the  Sultan's  earlier  history  from 
my  circle,  some  of  whom  had  spent  many  years  in  Pera. 
Pera  is  that  part  of  the  city  in  which  the  embassies  are 


Among  the  Perotes  3 

situated,  and  where  the  foreign  population  find  habita- 
tion as  distinct  from  the  native  Turks,  who  congregate 
in  and  about  Stamboul,  on  the  other  side  of  the  Golden 
Horn.  For  some  ethnological  reason,  as  if  Constanti- 
nople were  off  the  map  of  Europe,  Pera  is  called  the 
European  quarter — the  Christian  quarter  would  be  more 
correct. 

In  the  pleasant  days  of  my  first  visit,  while  idling  in 
Perean  drawing-rooms,  or  sight-seeing  in  Stamboul  or 
Galata,  or  venturing  across  the  Bosphorus  to  explore 
Scutari,  many  things  were  told  me  about  Abdul.  My 
own  observation,  too,  on  this  and  the  only  other  visit  I 
paid  to  the  Sublime  Porte  in  his  reign  gave  me  added 
insight  into  Abdul's  character. 

When  he  became  Sultan  he  early  became  obsessed 
with  the  idea  that  it  was  necessary  to  resort  to  any 
measures,  however  questionable,  to  keep  his  throne. 
Though  his  education  had  been  neglected,  he  had  con- 
siderable natural  intelhgence,  with  which  he  combined 
a  cunning  such  as  the  East  alone  can  produce. 

He  was  a  clever  politician,  but  he  had  neither  patriotic 
nor  noble  instincts.  He  gave  one  the  impression  that 
the  fate  of  Turkey  was  a  matter  of  profound  indifference 
to  him  beside  that  of  his  own  future.  Abdul  well  knew 
that  the  security  of  his  throne  depended  on  the  position 
his  country  would  be  able  to  maintain,  as  well  as  on  the 
measure  of  its  development  amid  the  various  intrigues  that 
permeated  every  aspect  of  life  in  the  Ottoman  Empire. 

Above  everything  else,  so  one  w^ho  for  years  was  in 


4  The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  confidence  of  the  Sultan  told  me,  he  would  have 
preferred  a  quiet  life  in  the  privacy  of  his  harem.  That 
he  could  not  do  so  proved  a  source  of  continual  dissatis- 
faction and  sorrow,  but  nevertheless  it  was  not  idle  regret ; 
rather,  it  caused  him  to  give  considerable  attention  to 
European  affairs.  Events  showed  very  clearly  to  those 
behind  the  scenes  how  ingeniously  he  contrived  to 
arrange  things  in  such  a  way  that  his  alliance  and  co- 
operation came  to  be  sought  after.  Abdul  Hamid  was 
clever  enough  to  see  what  really  lay  under  many  of  the 
protestations  of  friendship  about  which  he  heard  so  much 
from  certain  European  Powers.  He  realised  that  such 
attempts  to  approach  him  or  to  obtain  his  help  proceeded 
rather  from  the  desire  to  win  an  advantage  of  some  kind 
than  from  the  wish  to  cultivate  good  relations  with  him 
or  with  his  government. 

With  this  feeling  in  his  mind,  Abdul  adjusted  his 
actions  accordingly,  and  treated  any  advances  with  a 
craftiness  that  ended  in  his  being  distrusted  by  nearly 
every  European  Power  and  despised  by  every  European 
Sovereign  almost  without  exception. 

At  the  same  time,  by  the  mere  fact  of  his  occupation 
of  the  throne  of  Mahmoud  II.  and  of  the  great  Sulei- 
man, he  was  one  of  the  most  important  roj'^al  personages 
of  the  Continent.  This  factor  was  one  apt  to  be  lost  sight 
of,  the  more  easily  because  there  existed  the  feeling  that 
his  tenancy  of  the  throne  would  be  short.  Abdul  Hamid 
himself,  to  a  high  degree,  shared  the  feeling  that  he  was 
destined  to  be  overthrown  by  a  palace  revolution  of  the 


Abdul,  an  Enigma  5 

kind  which  had  hurled  his  predecessors  from  the  throne 
into  a  prison  whence  they  never  more  emerged  aUve. 
He  knew  that  stabihty  was  the  one  thing  which  he  lacked, 
and  so  he  thought  he  could  replace  it  by  tyranny.  He 
failed  to  realise  that  tyranny  also  breeds  revolution. 

To  me,  and  probably  to  most  other  people,  Abdul 
Hamid  was  an  enigma.  His  character  was  truly  Oriental, 
as  I  had  reason  to  experience  personally,  and  not  the  least 
of  his  mannerisms  was  his  consistent  concealment  of  his 
true  thoughts.  Few  even  among  the  people  who  saw  him 
daily  and  in  whom  he  appeared — outwardly,  at  least — to 
confide,  ever  guessed  what  was  really  in  his  mind.  He 
carried  this  quahty  so  far  that  he  succeeded  in  hiding 
from  everyone  the  fact  that  he  knew  the  French  language 
to  perfection. 

In  this  way  Abdul  Hamid  was  able  later  on  to  pretend 
that  what  foreign  ambassadors  told  him  had  not  been 
properly  interpreted,  or,  again,  that  he  had  not  grasped 
the  proper  meaning  of  communications  made  to  him. 

This  fact  is  one  of  far  more  importance  in  the  turnings 
of  Fate  than  at  first  becomes  apparent.  Not  unUkely 
Europe  would  have  been  spared  vexatious  or  even  bloody 
complications  had  not  the  wiliness  of  Abdul  in  this  direc- 
tion led  him  to  be  hoist  with  his  own  petard.  I  had  it  from 
the  lips  of  Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein  himself  that, 
so  far  as  he  knew,  the  only  person  who  perceived  the 
deception  was  the  Emperor  William  II.,  who,  whilst  on 
his  visit  to  Constantinople,  during  an  interview  which  he 
had  with  the  Sultan,  suddenly  sent  away  the  interpreter, 


6  The  Near  East  from  Within 

and  then,  turning  on  his  discomfited  host,  bluntly  told 
him  that  they  had  better  discuss  alone  what  they  had  to 
say,  because  he  knew  very  well  that  they  could  understand 
each  other  without  any  outside  help. 

Abdul  Hamid  was  so  taken  by  surprise  that  he  could 
not  find  words  to  deny  the  assertion,  and  it  was  only  when 
the  conversation  came  to  an  end  that  he  begged  his  guest 
not  to  reveal  to  others  the  secret  he  had  penetrated.  The 
reply  was  typical  of  the  Emperor  :  "You  may  rest  quiet 
as  to  that  point,"  he  said.  "  It  is  far  more  to  my  interest 
than  to  yours  that  the  world  should  think  you  do  not 
understand  French,  and  that,  in  consequence,  you  were 
unable  to  discuss  politics  with  me." 

I  have  mentioned  the  incident  because  it  throws  a 
certain  light  on  subsequent  events.  The  Commander  of 
the  Faithful  and  the  all-powerful  Kaiser  had  learned  to 
gauge  each  other's  strength  and  to  realise  that  an  alliance 
might  in  time  bring  about  great  events.  But  in  this 
game  the  advantage  remained  for  a  long  while  on  the  side 
of  Abdul  Hamid,  who  knew  to  a  nicety  how  to  use  his 
position  to  advantage.  He  constantly  played  Germany 
against  Russia  and  Russia  against  England,  and  in  that 
way  obtained  considerable  loans — which  he  used  for  his 
personal  extravagances  more  often  than  for  his  country's 
needs. 

It  is  a  tribute  to  his  skill  in  playing  the  game  of 
politics  on  the  chessboard  of  Europe  that  almost  invari- 
ably we  discovered  that,  whenever  he  was  threatened  by 
a  conspiracy  at  home  or  by  aggression  from  abroad,  Abdul 


Elusive  Signs  of  Progress  7 

had  contrived  that  one  or  other  of  the  great  Powers  should 
interfere  on  his  behalf. 

Looking  backward  over  the  reign  of  Abdul  Hamid,  the 
conclusion  of  the  historian  would  doubtless  be  that  Turkey 
had  retained  its  political  importance  during  his  tenure  of 
the  throne,  but  had  shown  a  palpable  intellectual  decline. 
The  Young  Turk  movement  and  initial  impetus  for  the 
emancipation  of  women  were  only  elusive  signs  of  pro- 
gress, and  in  realitj^  meant  little  in  the  way  of  national 
enlightenment.  The  police  effectuallj^  barred  progress  on 
the  road  of  civilisation  and  of  culture.  Ambition  w^as 
an  imknown  quantity,  because  there  was  daily  the  danger 
of  becoming  a  victim  of  the  secret  police,  whose  sway 
was  the  more  formidable  in  that  it  was  the  only  institu- 
tion in  the  Ottoman  Empire  which  could  not  be  bought 
or  sold,  owing  to  the  fact  that  it  was  controlled  entirely 
by  the  Sultan,  who  reserved  to  himself  the  sole  right  to 
dispose  of  people  who  fell  under  his  displeasure. 

Every  morning  the  official  in  charge  of  this  important 
department  reported  at  Yildiz  Kiosk  what  had  taken 
place  in  Constantinople  during  the  preceding  twenty-four 
hours.  Especially  was  this  activity  displayed  in  the  foreign 
and  diplomatic  quarters,  and  also  in  regard  to  certain 
progressive  Turkish  families.  The  number  of  secret 
executions  that  took  place  during  the  reign  is  generally 
credited  to  be  enormous ;  quite  often  a  man  or  woman 
suddenly  vanished,  after  having  gone  out  for  a  walk,  or 
whilst  making  a  call.  Abdul  Hamid  believed  that  the 
best  way  to  render  his  enemies  harmless  was  to  annihilate 


8  The  Near  East  from  Within 

them  at  once.  Before  he  came  to  the  throne  he  had 
witnessed  so  many  palace  conspiracies,  been  present  at 
the  discussion  of  so  many  plots  against  the  Sovereign 
of  the  day,  that  perhaps  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that 
he  always  expected  to  find  a  foe  lurking  behind  some 
curtain  in  order  to  assassinate  him. 

The  precautions  with  which  the  Sultan  surrounded 
himself  at  Yildiz  Kiosk  were  altogether  extraordinary. 
Quite  by  chance  one  day  I  happened  upon  a  jealously 
guarded  secret,  one  which,  I  believe,  has  never  until  now 
been  made  public.  I  refer  to  the  curious  fact  that  the  head 
of  his  service  of  secret  spies  and  bodyguards  was  a  German 
ex-detective,  whose  mission  it  had  been  in  previous  years 
to  watch  over  the  safety  of  the  Emperor  William  I.  The 
prophets  have  it  that  WiUiam  II.  recommended  him  to 
Abdul  Hamid  during  the  visit  to  which  I  have  already 
alluded.  So  long  as  that  man  remained  at  his  post,  not 
one  of  the  many  plots  against  the  Sultan  succeeded. 
This  prince  of  secret  agents  died  shortly  before  the  cul- 
mination of  the  conspiracy  which  hurled  Abdul  from  his 
throne. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  when  William  II.  paid  his 
visit  to  Constantinople  he  hoped  to  persuade  the  Sultan 
to  enter  into  an  alliance  with  Germany.  He  did  not 
succeed ;  partly  because  he  displayed  far  too  much  eager- 
ness, thus  giving  the  Turkish  Government  an  inflated 
idea  of  its  own  influence  since  its  co-operation  was  so  per- 
tinaciously sought  by  the  monarch  whom  they  believed 
to  be  the  most  powerful  in  Europe.     Another  element 


Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein        9 

in  the  failure  of  William  II.  was  that  Abdul  Hamid  wisely 
inferred  that  it  might  be  more  profitable  to  see  whether 
he  could  not  secure  better  conditions  elsewhere. 

It  was  most  amusing  to  watch  the  details  of  this  game 
of  diplomatic  chess.  By  thus  playing  off  one  embassy 
against  another,  the  Ottoman  monarch  gained  years  of 
quietness,  and  in  a  certain  degree  afforded  greater  facilities 
for  expansion  and  development  to  his  people  than  he 
could  have  done  under  different  conditions.  When  the 
Serbs  or  Bulgarians  annoyed  the  Turkish  Empire,  when 
England  clamoured  for  some  concession  of  a  commercial 
nature,  when  Russia  threatened  an  invasion  of  Asia 
Minor,  the  Sultan  sent  for  the  particular  ambassador 
accredited  at  his  Court,  and  contrived  to  smooth  over  the 
difficulty  which  had  arisen,  mostly  by  promising  some- 
thing. If  matters  became  desperate,  he  appealed  to  his 
good  friend  William  II.,  who  seemed  to  think  it  his 
imperative  duty  to  watch  over  the  welfare  of  the  Turk. 

In  the  meantime  minor  matters — or,  at  least,  what 
in  the  eyes  of  Abdul  were  of  minor  importance — such  as 
the  concession  of  the  Bagdad  Railway,  were  granted  to 
the  enterprising  Teutons.  And  more  valuable  still,  the 
German  Ambassador,  Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein, 
contrived  to  gain  the  confidence  of  Abdul  Hamid,  and 
fondly  believed  that  thereby  he  had  established  himself 
as  the  paramount  voice  in  his  councils. 

Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein  was  perhaps  the  one 
man  in  the  whole  world  who  was  absolutely  instructed  as 
to  the  real  aims  of  the  policy  pursued  by  William  II., 


10  The  Near  East  from  Within 

and  I  have  always  held  the  opinion  that  it  was  partly  upon 
his  advice  that  the  Emperor  adopted  the  attitude  toward 
the  world  at  large  which  so  successfully  led  people  astray 
as  to  his  ultimate  object. 

Clever,  insinuating  in  spite  of  his  gruff  manners  and 
love  for  plain  speaking,  Baron  von  Marschall  was  the  most 
profound  student  of  human  nature  it  has  ever  been  my 
fortune  to  meet.  He  could  gauge  the  moral  and  intel- 
lectual worth  of  a  man  with  unerring  accuracy  after  only 
a  few  moments'  conversation  with  him.  He  had  fathomed 
at  once  the  cowardice,  barbarity,  and  Eastern  cunning 
which  made  up  the  real  Abdul  Hamid.  He  understood 
admirably  how  to  play  upon  these  qualities  as  occasion 
required.  More  than  that,  he  had  managed  to  secure 
secret  allies  in  the  very  precincts  of  Yildiz  Kiosk.  I  will 
not  say  that  the  representatives  of  other  Powers  had  not 
also  succeeded  in  securing  interested  influence  and  sources 
of  private  information  and  advice,  but  it  always  seemed  to 
me  that  in  this  respect  the  Baron  had  outdistanced  other 
diplomatic  workers.  There  was  not  only  the  police  agent 
of  whom  I  have  already  spoken,  but  also  the  chief  eunuch, 
and,  too,  a  favourite  slave  of  the  Padishah,  a  Christian 
girl  who  had  unbounded  influence  over  him,  principally 
on  account  of  the  enmity  with  which  the  other  inhabitants 
of  the  harem  regarded  her. 

The  mention  of  this  woman  tempts  me  to  dwell  upon 
the  undoubted  fact  that  in  the  Ottoman  Empire  political 
exigencies  are  at  the  mercy  of  the  merest  incident  and 
swayed  too  often  by  the  inner  currents  of  Turkish  life 


A  Man  of  Passions  n 

which  are,  and  will  long  remain,  impenetrable  mysteries 
to  the  foreigner. 

Apart  from  his  love  of  money,  Abdul  Hamid  had  no 
other  great  passions.  Sensual  like  all  Orientals,  he  did 
not  care  for  women  beyond  the  brutal  satisfaction  which 
he  derived  from  their  possession.  Love  was  unknown  to 
him,  and  yet  he  fell  under  the  influence  of  the  woman 
just  referred  to,  who  contrived  to  worm  herself  into  his 
entire  confidence  and  to  become  his  associate  in  many 
plans  and  many  designs.  Well  educated,  exceedingly 
clever  and  intriguing,  this  Christian  woman  whom  circum- 
stances had  thrown  into  the  Imperial  Harem  was  but  too 
glad  to  take  part  in  a  political  conspiracy  of  magnitude. 
Up  to  a  certain  point  she  became  a  pawn  in  the  diplomatic 
game  played  by  Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein,  being 
in  some  measure  associated  with  him  in  the  attempts 
which  he  made  to  secure  Abdul  Ham  id's  acquiescence  in 
the  plans  of  the  Emperor  William  II. 

To  a  man  of  the  perception  of  Baron  von  Marschall 
it  was  not  difficult  to  discover  what  a  precious  ally  this 
woman  could  be.  For  the  purpose  of  this  narrative  we 
will  call  her  Amina.  Bieberstein  flattered  her,  made  her 
lavish  presents,  flashed  brilliant  prospects  before  her  eyes, 
and  even  allowed  Amina  to  think  that,  should  Turkey 
enter  thoroughly  into  the  plans  of  Germany,  she  would 
find  herself  strongly  supported  in  her  ambition  to  be 
recognised  as  the  only  legitimate  wife  of  Abdul  Hamid. 

Other  diplomats  had  attempted  to  approach  her; 
among  others.  Count  Corti,  who  for  a  good  many  years 


12 


The  Near  East  from  Within 


held  the  post  of  ItaUan  Ambassador  at  Constantinople, 
and  who  had  been  the  first  to  realise  the  power  of  the 
harem  to  decide  the  most  momentous  questions.  All  the 
efforts  of  these  gentlemen  failed  utterly ;  Amina  refused 
to  hsten  to  them.  Baron  von  Marschall's  tactics  were 
different :  he  first  discovered  who  were  the  Turkish  ladies 
admitted  to  the  intimacy  of  the  harem,  and  induced  one 
of  them  to  represent  him  as  an  admirer  of  Amina.  Then 
one  day  he  arranged  matters  so  that  he  found  himself  in 
the  bazaar  bargaining  over  some  carpets  and  turquoises, 
at  the  same  moment  as  the  Sultan's  favourite.  A  liberal 
baksheesh  distributed  to  the  eunuchs  who  accompanied 
Amina,  and  to  the  Persian  in  whose  shop  they  were 
permitted  to  remain  alone  for  a  few  minutes,  he  forthwith 
told  the  young  inmate  of  the  Imperial  Harem  that  he 
had  heard  so  much  about  her  that  he  felt  sure  she  would 
respond  to  his  appeal  and  use  her  influence  over  the 
Sultan,  which  he  knew  was  great,  to  induce  Abdul  to 
accept  certain  promises  which  emanated  from  Berlin. 

The  recital — told  me  with  every  evidence  of  truth  and 
borne  out  by  circumstances  within  my  own  knowledge — 
continues  that  he  pictured  the  brilliant  results  that  would 
accrue,  the  power  that  would  become  Abdul's,  and  inci- 
dentally Amina's,  if  they  allowed  his  master  William  II. 
to  help  Turkey  re-establish  once  more  the  wide  sway  of 
Mohammedanism.  Amina  fell  into  the  snare,  and  hence- 
forward Germany  secured  a  powerful  ally  in  the  immediate 
surrovmdings  of  the  Sultan,  one  who,  too,  kept  von 
Marschall  regularly  informed  of  what  was  asked  of  the 


The  Eternal  Feminine  13 

Sultan  and  of  what  he  planned  to  do.  Through  the  know- 
ledge so  gained  the  German  diplomat  was  able  to  win 
Abdul  Hamid  over  to  his  opinion  or  to  secure  his  endorse- 
ment of  some  secret  action  the  Baron  had  received 
instructions  from  Berlin  to  recommend. 

These  private  messages  emanated,  not  from  the 
Foreign  Office,  but  from  the  Emperor  William  himself 
in  holograph  letters  which  were  forwarded  by  special 
messengers.  On  one  occasion,  when  a  communication  of 
more  than  usual  moment  had  arrived,  Abdul  Hamid,  per- 
suaded by  Amina,  consented  to  receive  Baron  Marschall 
von  Bieberstein  in  the  dead  of  the  night.  This  confidential 
interview  led  to  great  things,  because  from  that  day  Ger- 
many became  a  palpable  factor  in  Turkish  politics  and 
administration. 

For  a  number  of  years  certain  German  military  officers 
had  been  "on  leave"  in  Constantinople.  In  this  way, 
in  1883,  von  der  Goltz  laid  the  foundation  of  the  work 
with  which  in  later  years  his  name  was  to  be  associated — 
the  remodelling  on  German  lines  of  the  Ottoman  army. 
Various  missions  also  had  been  to  and  fro.  It  was  notice- 
able, however,  that  after  the  appointment  of  Baron  von 
Marschall  less  secrecy  attached  to  German  operations,  that 
the  reorganisation  of  the  Turkish  army  under  the  auspices 
of  officers  of  Teutonic  origin  was  conducted  with  greater 
zeal,  and  was  submitted  to  with  less  reluctance  by  the 
Mohammedan  commanders. 

When  this  work  of  training  the  army  after  European 
methods  was  first  undertaken  by  Germany  it  was  carried 


14  The  Near  East  from  Within 

out  with  indifferent  success.  The  German  officers  were 
not  enamoured  of  their  task,  and  allowed  their  impatience, 
if  not  contempt,  of  Moslem  soldiers  to  be  seen.  On  the 
other  hand,  or  perhaps  as  a  result  of  this  attitude,  the 
rank  and  file  of  the  Turkish  army  proved  distinctly  hostile 
to  European  discipline.  The  whole  problem  was  beset 
with  difficulty.  The  Turks  of  that  day  resented  being 
commanded  by  a  Christian  officer.  Moslems  did  not 
believe  in  European  tactics,  and  the  Turkish  military 
leaders  did  not  relish  being  ordered  about  by  a  newcomer 
and  a  foreigner  at  that. 

When  the  war  with  Greece  took  place  it  was  seen, 
however,  that  German  influence  had  given  the  Turkish 
army  a  power  previously  lacking.  Nevertheless  the  army 
complained  that  the  so-called  reforms  had  not  given  them 
a  speedier  and  easier  victory. 

As  was  to  be  expected,  too,  all  this  time  France  and 
England  continually  combated  the  activity  of  the  German 
military  mission  through  their  respective  ambassadors ; 
and,  what  with  one  thing  and  another,  the  great  Teutonic 
effort  to  capture  a  dominating  influence  in  Turkey  seemed 
to  collapse  into  insignificance,  though  I  must  say  that 
England  shut  her  eyes  persistently  to  the  state  of  affairs 
and  was  singularly  apathetic  just  at  the  moment  her  great 
opportunity  arose. 

The  inner  reason  for  this  decline  of  Teutonic  influence 
was  that  the  German  mission  had  never  been  properly 
supported  by  Abdul  Hamid,  who  at  that  time  was  in 
reality  still  hesitating  as  to  which  side  he  ought  to  take. 


Lost  Opportunities  15 

There  was  a  moment  when  it  would  have  been  easy  to 
bring  him  under  French  influence,  but  Russia  either  did 
not  understand  or  else  would  not  accept  the  hints  which 
were  made  to  her  to  declare  herself  openly  as  antagonistic 
to  German  influence.  At  the  period  to  which  I  refer  the 
Franco-Russian  alliance  was  still  in  its  infancy.  Count  de 
Montebello,  the  French  Ambassador  at  Petrograd — or 
Petersburg  as  it  was  then — who,  from  the  fact  that 
he  had  been  for  some  years  in  the  same  capacity  at  Con- 
stantinople, had  a  wide  experience  of  both  Turkey  and 
the  Sultan,  did  not  attach  sufficient  importance  to  the 
possibility  of  German  influence  becoming  paramount  in 
the  councils  of  Abdul.  He  therefore  treated  with  in- 
difference the  efforts  made  by  William  II.  to  acquire  a 
solid  footing  on  the  Bosphorus. 

This  capital  mistake  of  a  man  who  ought  to  have 
known  better  led  ultimately  to  the  loss  of  French  prestige 
in  Turkey,  whilst  the  successive  British  Ambassadors  in 
that  country  did  not  perceive  the  gradual  weakening  of 
the  significance  to  the  Turk  of  English  power  and 
England's  position  as  the  greatest  Moslem  monarchy  in 
the  world.  Though  at  the  time  being  it  was  not  recog- 
nised, this  fact  was  to  have  appalling  consequences. 

In  those  distant  days,  when  Germany  was  first  putting 
forth  her  efforts  to  get  Turkey  under  her  influence,  many 
people  wondered  at  the  persistent  interest  which  the 
German  Emperor  took  in  all  matters  concerning  the 
military  development  of  Turkey.  Not  a  few  wondered 
what    induced    him   to    show   himself   so    well    disposed 


i6  The  Near  East  from  Within 

toward  a  nation  which  was  evidently  in  the  last  stage 
of  decay. 

One  day,  after  my  return  from  Constantinople,  I  was 
at  a  diplomatic  social  gathering — those  convenient  events 
where  one  can  make  arrangements  without  a  prying  world 
wondering  why  So-and-so  called  upon  another  So-and-so 

— when  a  certain  Princess  Ij exchanged  confidences 

with  me.  I  told  her  much  of  Constantinople  and  its 
intrigues — much  that  did  not  matter,  and  she  responded 
w4th  vivacious  gossip  of  the  same  calibre.  But  some  of 
her  w^ords  I  have  never  forgotten,  because  they  answered 
a  question  which  had  long  been  in  my  mind. 

I  had  ventured  to  comment  upon  the  mystery  of  the 
friendship  that  was  becoming  apparent  with  Turkey, 
when  the  Princess,  with  a  laugh,  said  that  I  was  trying 
to  throw  dust  in  her  eyes,  but  that  it  was  of  no  use,  for 
she  herself  had  heard  the  Emperor  tell  her  husband  that 
he  was  not  an  admirer  of  the  Sultan,  but  he  was  the  one 
man  in  the  world  who  w^ould  prove  the  most  useful  to 
Germany  later  on. 

He  explained,  continued  Princess  L — — ,  that  "Ger- 
many has  far  too  many  enemies  for  me  to  feel  quiet 
respecting  the  years  to  come.  Our  naval  supremacy  is 
disputed  by  England  as  well  as  by  France,  and  our  uncle 
Edward,  whenever  he  becomes  King,  which  let  us  hope 
will  not  be  so  soon,  will  try  his  best  to  excite  our  enemies 
against  us.  Under  these  circumstances  it  would  be  to  our 
advantage  to  have  Turkey  on  our  side,  if  only  on  account 
of  the  diversion  which  she  might  be  induced  to  make  by 


"Meddling  England"  17 

an  incursion  into  Egypt,  which  she  would  give  much  to 
snatch  from  under  the  English  yoke.  This  would  keep 
meddling  England  occupied,  and  after  all  this  is  what  we 
want.  If  you  think  over  all  this  you  will  then  perhaps 
share  my  opinion  that  the  Sultan  as  well  as  the  welfare 
of  Turkey  cannot  remain  indifferent  to  me." 

It  was  at  this  juncture  that  Baron  Marschall  von 
Bieberstein  was  appointed  to  Constantinople  in  October, 
1897.  Many  people  saw  a  significance  in  the  fact  that 
the  ex-Secretary  for  Foreign  Affairs  should  take  this 
diplomatic  post  so  soon,  but  two  months  after  the  signing 
of  the  Franco-Russian  agreement,  and  were  satisfied  that 
it  was  a  counter  move  to  any  possible  revival  of  Russian 
influence  at  the  Sublime  Porte  which  the  Tsar  might  feel 
inclined  to  attempt  now  that  he  had  the  possibility  of 
French  aid. 

In  sending  von  Marschall  to  Constantinople  the 
German  Emperor  evinced  his  discernment.  The  influence 
of  the  new  ambassador  was  not  long  in  making  itself 
manifest  in  an  improved  feeling.  He  was  not  looked  upon 
with  favour  at  Yildiz  during  the  first  days  of  his  tenure 
of  the  embassy,  but  he  speedily  caused  Abdul  to  change 
his  attitude,  in  which  he  was  aided  by  assurances  from 
Berlin  that  he  was,  as  it  were,  a  very  fine  fellow  indeed. 
Once  he  had  removed  Abdul's  aloofness,  the  Baron  sought 
to  gain  a  friendly  footing,  and  cast  about  him  to  discover 
persons  Hkely  to  be  amenable  to  suggestions  of  recipro- 
cation for  aiding  him  in  his  desire. 

One  of  the  outcomes  of  this  delicate  inquiry  was  von 


i8  The  Near  East  from  Within 

Marschall's  friendliness  with  Amina,  which  was  brought 
about  in  the  manner  already  related,  and  was  an  asset  of 
considerable  value  in  his  diplomatic  intrigues. 

Just  prior  to  the  deposition  of  Abdul  Ham  id  this  tool 
of  the  German  Ambassador  was  the  heroine  of  an  exciting 
adventure,  in  which  one  of  the  German  Emperor's  per- 
sonal letters  narrowly  escaped  falling  into  the  hands  of 
the  last  persons  William  II.  would  have  wished  to  learn 
its  contents.  It  would  undoubtedly  have  been  discovered 
by  the  Young  Turks  had  it  not  been  for  the  presence  of 
mind  of  Amina,  who  hastily  seized  it  from  under  the 
cushion  where  it  had  been  hidden,  and  managed  to  throw 
it  into  a  fire  at  the  very  moment  the  door  of  the  sleeping 
apartment  which  she  shared  with  Abdul  Hamid  was  being 
forced.  Later  on  she  contrived  to  have  William  II. 
apprised  of  what  she  had  done,  and  was  handsomely 
rewarded  for  her  prompt  action. 

It  would,  indeed,  have  been  most  awkward  for  the 
German  Emperor  had  the  contents  of  this  letter  been 
revealed,  because  it  would  have  stood  in  direct  opposition 
to  some  negotiations  which  he  had  undertaken  against 
Abdul  Hamid,  who  had  so  long  persisted  in  the  vacil- 
lating attitude  which  he  had  believed  to  be  so  clever  that 
at  last  W^iUiam  II.  had  found  out  that  he  was  being  made 
a  fool  of.  Thereupon  he  turned  toward  the  Young  Turk 
party,  in  whom  he  had  thought  it  likely  he  would  find 
more  honest  allies. 

At  that  precise  moment  the  subterranean  activities  of 
Baron   von   Marschall,    who   had  all   along   warned  the 


A  Warning  to  Russia  19 

Sultan  that  a  conspiracy  of  a  formidable  nature  was 
being  hatched  against  him,  had  drawn  the  attention  of 
a  very  intelligent  Serb.  This  man  himself  had  played 
a  part  of  no  little  importance  in  the  political  disturb- 
ances of  his  own  country.  But  this  by  the  way;  to 
return,  he  had  seen  through  Bieberstein's  diplomacy, 
and,  returning  from  Turkey,  had  warned  the  Russian 
Government  of  the  German  intrigues  that  were  going 
on  at  Constantinople.  He  argued  that  the  ultimate  issue 
of  these  undercurrents  was  the  conclusion  of  a  defensive 
and  offensive  alliance  between  Germany  and  the  Ottoman 
Empire.  The  great  bait  for  the  Sultan  was  that  thereby 
he  might  regain  Egypt  and  Batoum,  together  with  the 
fortress  of  Kars  in  Armenia.  Wilham  II.,  on  his  part, 
professed  to  be  satisfied  by  the  certainty  that,  with  the 
Sultan  as  his  ally,  should  ever  war  break  out  between 
Germany  and  Russia,  the  latter  would  find  her  commerce 
in  the  Black  Sea  paralysed. 

The  Servian  politician  to  whom  I  have  referred  had 
seen  through  that  game,  but,  unfortunately,  his  warning 
to  Petersburg  had  been  disregarded.  He  was  treated  as 
a  visionary  who  took  for  reality  the  product  of  a  dis- 
ordered imagination.  For  the  Germans  it  was  a  good 
stroke  of  destiny  that  the  one  man  who  guessed  the  real 
nature  of  the  aim  pursued  by  William  II.  had  been 
treated  as  a  madman.  Meanwhile  German  propaganda 
at  the  Sublime  Porte  was  temporarily  obscured,  while 
other  political  events  engrossed  the  attention  of  the 
world,  and  gradually  Turkey  came  to  be  considered  as  a 


20  The  Near  East  from  Within 

dangerous  element  only  on  account  of  possible  complica- 
tions which  the  development  of  those  different  Slav  States 
she  had  persecuted  in  long  bygone  ages  might  precipitate. 
Her  fate  seemed  to  be  sealed,  financially  at  least,  and 
her  enemies  looked  upon  the  final  disintegration  of  the 
Ottoman  Empire  as  a  foregone  conclusion. 

In  the  meantime,  unknown  to  all  but  the  few  prime 
movers,  the  reorganisation  of  her  different  institutions  had 
begun,  and  Turkey  was  given  to  understand  that  if  only 
she  persevered  in  improving  her  military  power  she  might 
yet  prove  in  time  a  formidable  surprise  to  those  who  had 
already  discounted  her  death  and  disappearance  from  the 
political  arena. 

In  saying  that  this  was  done  in  such  secrecy  that  the 
world  did  not  suspect,  I  am  not  quite  correct.  A  small 
circle  in  Turkey  guessed  that  something  important  was 
going  on. 

Out  of  this  nebulous  feeling  of  unrest  the  Young 
Turk  party  sprang  into  vigorous  life.  It  had  existed 
for  years  in  a  less  formidable  way  and  conducted  a  well- 
concealed  campaign  for  the  introduction  under  its  segis 
of  truly  progressive  methods  of  government.  Before  long 
the  party  had  some  of  the  most  important  political  men 
in  the  country  on  its  side,  and  the  movement  was  viewed 
with  sympathy  among  all  ranks  of  the  army.  Abdul's 
tenure  of  the  throne  was  not  opposed,  but  the  corrupt 
administration;  indeed,  at  one  moment  it  was  projected 
to  induce  the  Sultan  to  lead  the  Constitutional  party 
to  final  triumph.     Abdul  Hamid,  however,  was  not  the 


The  Young  Turks  21 

man  to  accept  such  a  situation,  and  very  soon  the  energy 
with  which  he  tried  to  break  the  power  of  the  Committee 
of  Union  and  Progress,  as  the  Young  Turks  called  their 
executive,  made  him  more  enemies  than  ever. 

Things  were  in  this  condition  of  seething  unrest  in 
Constantinople  when  Enver  Bey  sprang  into  prominence. 
An  incident  about  which  I  shall  have  something  to  say 
later  on  had  made  him  acquainted  with  Baron  von 
Marschall,  who  very  quickly  recognised  the  ambition  that 
lay  lurking  behind  the  smile  of  this  future  hero  of  one 
of  the  most  important  revolutions  of  modern  times. 
The  Baron  soon  invited  the  Bey  to  his  house  and  made 
friends  with  him,  inducing  him  to  talk  about  the  feelings 
nourished  among  the  army  in  regard  to  the  Sultan. 
When  he  ascertained  that  a  strong  party  existed  who 
wished  to  get  rid  of  Abdul  Hamid,  he  asked  Enver  Bey 
quite  brusquely  whether  he  would  not  undertake  to  head 
a  revolution  tending  to  dispossess  the  Sultan  of  a  crown 
which  he  was  wearing  neither  with  dignity  nor  with 
valour. 

Enver  Bey  was  no  fool,  and  at  first  turned  a  deaf 
ear  to  the  German  Ambassador.  Curiously  enough,  while 
Enver  was  debating  what  course  to  adopt,  it  got  to 
Hamid 's  ears  that  he  was  promoting  another  conspiracy 
against  the  life  of  the  Sultan. 

Abdul  Hamid  lost  no  time  in  acting,  and  on  the 
strength  of  the  advice  tendered  to  him  he  ordered  the 
arrest  of  Enver  Bey.  Enver,  however,  had  been  warned 
of  his  impending  fate  by  none  other  than  Baron  von 


22  The  Near  East  from  Within 

Marschall  himself,  who  evidently  beUeved  it  wise  to  have 
friends  everywhere.     Enver  Bey  evaded  arrest,  but  the 
road  to  further  dignities  and  honour  was  thereby  closed. 
He  was  dismissed  his  regiment  and  condemned  to  death. 
Such  treatment  was  bitterly  resented  by  Enver  Bey  as 
no  reason  for  the  degradation  was  given,  and  he  never 
learned  that  his  downfall  was  through  the  false  accusa- 
tion of  conspiracy  conveyed  through  Amina  to  the  Sultan. 
He  thereafter  nourished  in  his  heart  a  slumbering  feehng 
of  vindictive  animosity  which  only  needed  the  opportunity 
to  burst  forth  into  active  operation  against  his  Sovereigii. 
From  his  retreat  in  Asia  Minor  he  plotted  with  friends 
in  Constantinople,  of  whom  he  had  plenty,  to  enter  into 
a  real  conspiracy  against  Abdul  Hamid,  whom  it  was  at 
first  intended  to  put  to  death  without  further  ceremony. 
I  know  personally,  however,  that  Baron  von  Marschall, 
who  had  been  kept  faithfully  informed  of  all  that  was 
going  on,  demurred  to  this.     The  life  of  the  Sultan  was 
to  be  spared,  and  on  no  account  was  he  to  be  molested 
beyond  the  fact  of  his  deposition.     The  orders  of  the 
Emperor  William  were  precise  as  to  this  point,  and  only 
on  that  condition  the  Baron  consented  to  furnish  the 
conspirators  with  the  money  they  required  to  put  into 
execution  their  intentions.     He  was  quite  willing  to  dis- 
possess Abdul  Hamid  of  his  throne,  but  he  did  not  intend 
to  lose  him  as  an  important  trump  in  the  game  which  he 
knew  his  master  was  playing. 

The  revolution  took   place,    but  not  before   Amina 
had  been  secretly  warned  to  put  aside  whatever  objects  of 


Abdul's  Big  Mistake  23 

value,  such  as  money  and  jewels,  which  she  possessed,  all 
of  which  were  taken  for  safety  to  the  German  Embassy. 

The  great  mistake  made  by  Abdul  Hamid,  and  to 
which  ultimately  he  owed  his  fall,  was  that  he  failed  to 
perceive  that  Eastern  cunning  could  not  succeed  for  ever. 
He  had  become  so  unpopular  in  his  own  country  and 
among  his  own  subjects  that  he  could  no  longer  hope  to 
hold  his  crown  unless  he  resorted  to  some  help  from  out- 
side, and  by  his  own  shiftiness  he  had  dammed  the  sources. 
With  all  his  unmistakable  political  abilities  he  was  but 
an  Oriental  despot.  Unfortunately  for  him,  the  nation 
over  which  he  ruled  was  tired  of  despots,  though  it  might 
have  felt  contented  under  an  absolute  sovereign  such  as  is 
referred  to  in  the  Koran  and  whom  Islam  had  worshipped 
in  past  ages.  Abdul  had  imagined  that  in  order  to  con- 
solidate his  position  he  must  inspire  terror ;  but,  instead 
of  terror,  he  only  secured  the  hatred  and  contempt  of  his 
people. 

His  nature  was  a  curious  mixture  of  boldness  of  mind 
and  conception,  and  fear  at  some  unknown  and  dreadful 
fate  which  he  ever  felt  was  hovering  over  him  and  his 
race.  Avaricious  to  an  extent  that  has  not  been  suffi- 
ciently appreciated,  he  hastened,  as  soon  as  he  was 
warned  by  Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein  that  a  con- 
spiracy was  being  hatched  against  him,  to  put  in  a  place 
of  safety  as  much  as  he  could  of  the  treasures  and  money 
he  had  amassed,  and  to  this  day  in  two  German  banks 
considerable  sums  are  lying  to  his  credit  about  which  few 
of  those  he  trusts  have  any  idea  and  which  his  enemies 


24  The  Near  East  from  Within 

have  so  far  failed  to  discover.  It  is  a  curiously  illuminating 
insight  into  Eastern  fatalism  that  he  never  thought  of 
providing  for  his  own  safety  beyond  the  precautions  he 
generally  employed.  Except  that  he  never  slept  two 
consecutive  nights  in  the  same  room,  he  changed  none 
of  his  usual  habits.  He  had  been  advised  to  fly  to  some 
place  where  he  could  be  better  guarded  than  was  possible 
at  Yildiz,  but  he  had  always  refused. 

Sultan  Abdul  Hamid  was  cunning.  He  was  not 
unaware  of  the  bribery  and  corruption  which  permeated 
official  spheres,  but  in  the  secrecy  of  his  heart  he  felt 
that  on  his  own  part  he  was  not  free  from  reproach  in 
that  respect.  He  remembered  occasions  when,  for  this 
or  that  concession,  he  too  had  accepted  baksheesh,  and 
a  few  millions  had  found  their  way  into  his  pocket  rather 
than  into  the  coffers  of  the  State. 

When  the  fall  came  and  he  was  imprisoned  at 
Salonika,  the  fact  that  he  was  so  rich  and  that  it  was 
essential  to  lay  hold  of  his  well-concealed  wealth  assuredly 
preserved  his  life ;  otherwise  he  would  have  been  killed  as 
soon  as  he  was  taken  prisoner.  As  it  was,  Abdul  Hamid 
continued  to  snap  his  fingers  at  the  revolutionaries  who 
had  robbed  him  of  his  throne.  For  years  he  kept  them 
on  tenterhooks,  doling  out  small  bribes  of  a  few  thou- 
sands at  a  time,  and  never  revealing  the  place  where  he 
had  hidden  his  many  millions.  In  addition  to  the  two 
Berlin  banks,  he  confided  specie  to  an  enormous  amount 
to  the  keeping  of  the  Emperor  WilHam  II.,  who  sug- 
gested the  idea  to  him.    The  German  Emperor  holds  the 


Arrest  of  Abdul  Hamid  25 

strings  of  Abdul  Hamid's  private  purse ;  at  any  rate  he 
did  so  till  the  war  broke  out,  the  interest  on  the  money 
entrusted  to  his  care  going  regularly  to  the  ex-Sultan, 
though  no  one  has  ever  been  able  to  discover  the  channel 
through  which  the  operation  is  transacted. 

When  the  Young  Turks  made  him  prisoner,  he  did 
not  offer  the  slightest  resistance,  but  from  his  prison 
at  Salonika,  in  spite  of  the  rigorous  way  in  which  he  was 
watched,  he  succeeded  in  maintaining  communication  with 
the  outside  world,  notably  with  Berlin,  and  he  followed 
with  the  utmost  interest  all  that  went  on  at  Constanti- 
nople. He  did  not  envy  his  successor ;  on  the  contrary, 
he  remained  upon  good  terms  with  him,  as  soon  as  he 
had  realised  that  in  time,  if,  indeed,  he  did  not  regain 
the  throne  which  he  had  lost,  he  might  at  least  be  allowed 
to  return  to  one  of  his  palaces  on  the  Bosphorus,  there 
to  spend  the  rest  of  his  days  in  the  leisurely  fashion  so 
dear  to  Eastern  hearts.  He  had  no  regret  for  the  supreme 
power  which  he  had  lost.  Indeed,  he  is  possibly  happier 
to-day  than  at  any  time  during  the  years  when  millions 
of  people  trembled  at  his  approach. 

A  new  Sultan  was  elected,  about  whom  I  shall  have 
something  to  say  later.  He  was  a  weak,  timid  man, 
kind-hearted,  but  without  any  will  of  his  own.  He  was 
demoralised  by  years  of  semi-captivity,  in  which  his  best 
faculties  had  been  smothered  under  the  continual  fear 
of  assassination  at  the  hands  of  his  brother,  who  bore 
him  a  deep  hatred.  He  felt  more  than  surprised  at  his 
unexpected  elevation  to  the  throne  and  absolutely  unable 


26  The  Near  East  from  Within 

to  fight  against  the  will  of  those  who  had  brought  him 

there. 

Under  his  reign  Turkish  politics,  which  had  been 
controlled  by  the  iron  hand  of  Abdul  Hamid,  were  left 
to  the  guidance  of  men  without  experience  and  mthout 
poHcy.  It  was  not  surprising,  therefore,  that  the  adminis- 
tration allowed  itself  to  be  brought  under  German  influ- 
ence, and  became  dependent  on  the  w^ill  of  the  Emperor 
WilUam  II.,  until  at  last  the  treaty  of  alliance  which  he 
had  long  tried  without  success  to  bring  about  became 
an  accomplished  fact.  Turkey  then  suddenly  came  for- 
ward as  an  important  factor  in  a  most  serious  situation. 
Where  Marshal  von  der  Goltz  had  failed.  General  Liman 
von  Sanders  was  to  succeed  most  brilliantly. 

On  occasion,  since  his  return  to  his  former  capital, 
Abdul  Hamid  has  given  unasked  advice  to  Mohammed  V. , 
the  following  of  which  Mehmed  has  never  had  cause  to 
regret.  It  is  said  that  Abdul  had  a  good  deal  to  do  with 
the  recent  attitude  adopted  by  the  Turkish  Government 
and  with  the  declaration  of  war  against  the  xlUies.  How- 
ever that  may  be,  it  is  more  than  certain  that  the  rash  act 
was  strongly  reminiscent  of  the  German  sympathies  of 
Abdul  Hamid.  In  his  retreat  of  Beylerbey  he  sees  more 
visitors  than  he  is  supposed  to  do,  and  I  have  been  told 
that  the  Khedive  Abbas  Hilmi  more  than  once  appealed 
to  his  experience  and  sought  advice  from  him. 

After  having  feigned  illness  and  melancholy  during 
the  years  which  he  spent  in  confinement  at  Salonika, 
he  suddenly  seemed  to  gather  new  strength,  and  it  is  said 


A  Past  Without  Remorse  27 

by  some  people  that  he  now  prepares  himself  for  the 
possibility  of  having  once  more  a  powerful  voice  in  the 
destinies  of  Europe.  Aged  though  he  is,  he  has  lost 
none  of  his  former  activity  of  mind.  The  old  fox  secretly 
amuses  himself  by  watching  the  drama  which  he  has 
helped  to  prepare,  but  for  which  he  has  contrived  to  avoid 
any  responsibility.  Whilst  sipping  his  cup  of  coffee  he 
remembers  the  past  without  remorse,  and  looks  forward 
to  the  future  with  that  perfect  tranquillity  which  only 
a  saint  or  a  confirmed  criminal  can  feel. 


CHAPTER  II 

LIFE    IN     CONSTANTINOPLE 

MY  first  visit  to  the  Near  East  was  with  the  inten- 
tion of  seeing  something  of  Asia  Minor  as  well  as 
of  Constantinople. 

My  first  destination  was  Smyrna,  but  I  was  so  entirely 
interested  in  the  people  of  Constantinople  that  I  did  little 
else  than  remain  in  the  city,  studying  its  ways  and  learning 
a  little — exceedingly  little — of  the  intricate,  not  to  say 
tortuous,  mind  of  the  Moslem.  It  is  true  I  managed  to 
make  a  short  excursion  to  Brusa,  but,  apart  from  this, 
the  rest  of  the  month  at  my  disposal  I  spent  in  the  capital 
of  the  Turkish  Empire. 

I  had  been  given  considerable  information  about  the 
Perotes — the  native  inhabitants  of  the  European  quarter 
of  Pera — and  had  always  been  told  that  they  exhibited 
a  curious  minghng  of  the  habits  of  the  Oriental  with  those 
of  the  European  middle  class.  There  is  a  certain  amount 
of  truth  in  this,  but  the  description  conveys  to  the  mind 
of  the  stranger  only  a  very  weak  picture  of  their  curious 
and  heterogeneous  character. 

It  is  one  of  the  unwritten  laws  of  Pera,  which  are 
as  unalterable  as  the  dicta  of  the  Medes  and  Persians, 

28 


The  "Right  People"  29 

that  everybody  must  know  everybody  else.  One  is  not 
even  allowed  to  acquire  that  knowledge  gradually,  but 
within  an  hour  of  one's  arrival  the  new-comer  is  expected 
to  get  into  contact  with  all  who  consider  themselves  to 
be  the  "  right  people."  This  expression  "  right  people  " 
is  one  of  the  most  frequently  used  phrases  in  Constanti- 
nople, and  it  is  used  with  such  lavishness  that,  nine  times 
out  of  ten,  it  gets  beyond  the  sublime  and  becomes 
ridiculous.  For  instance,  a  certain  butcher  belongs  to 
the  "right  people,"  yet  there  are  Pashas  against  whom 
you  brush  daily  who  can  lay  no  claim  to  that  distinction, 
notwithstanding  the  fact  that  their  breasts  are  covered 
with  orders  and  that  they  occupy  in  the  miUtary  or  civil 
hierarchy  a  very  high  place  indeed. 

The  Perotes,   a  name  for  which,  by  the  way,  they 
manifest  an  inordinate  pride,  are  mostly  half-castes,   a 
mixture  of  Greek  and  Armenian  blood,  sprinkled  here 
and  there  with  descendants  of  more  Western  Europeans. 
Perote  ladies  may  be  amusing,  especially  by  their  utter 
disregard  of  conventionality,  but  they  are  not  entertain- 
ing.    Their  education  is  slender,  and  their  conversation 
a  mixture  of  slander  combined  with  coarseness.     They 
seldom  read  anything  except  French  novels  of  a  very 
low  order,  and  newspapers  of  a  similar  grade,  of  which 
many  exist  throughout  Turkey.     They  are  perennially 
eager  for   knowledge  as  to  the  actions,   thoughts,   and 
general  movements  of  the  Turkish  ladies  whom  they  know 
and  of  the  foreigners  who  happen  to  come  to  gossip-loving 
Constantinople.     The  most  reserved  soon  find,  to  their 


30 


The  Near  East  from  Within 


intense  surprise  and  disgust,  that  secrecy  is  impossible  in 
Pera ;  plans  or  intentions  somehow  become  known  to 
perfect  strangers  with  incredible  swiftness;  privacy  is 
beyond  attainment.  "  Society  "  in  the  capital  of  Turkey 
is  merely  another  name  for  petty  espionage ;  one  cannot 
go  out  of  doors  without  being  watched  by  a  dozen  people, 
who  at  once  start  speculating  why  one  turned  to  the  left 
when  it  would  have  been  just  as  easy  to  go  to  the  right. 
The  progress  of  every  steam  or  motor  launch  that  plies 
on  the  Bosphorus  is  known,  not  so  much  by  its  particular 
shape  as  by  its  distinguishing  whistle,  at  the  sound  of 
which  people  rush  to  their  windows  to  watch  with 
eagerness  and  curiosity  the  boat's  course. 

In  Perote-land  every  new  arrival  is  subjected  to  a 
curiosity  which  reaches  a  magnitude  those  who  have  not 
experienced  it  steadfastly  refuse  to  believe.  For  instance, 
when  I  put  in  an  appearance  for  the  first  time  at  the  ball 
which  takes  place  at  the  Grand  Hotel  of  Therapia  every 
Saturday,  I  was  immediately  pounced  upon  by  a  lady 
afflicted  with  two  daughters,  each  of  whom  was  just  as 
much  a  character  as  her  mother.  She  started  questioning 
me  at  once  as  to  my  reasons  for  visiting  the  Turkish 
capital.  When  I  tried  to  assure  her  that  I  had  been  simply 
actuated  by  the  desire  to  travel,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  visit  friends  at  the  German  Embassy,  she  smiled  in 
a  mysterious  way,  and  murmured,  "Oh!  You  are  dis- 
creet, like  all  gentlemen,  but  we  know  better.  We  have 
heard  all  about  it."  And  when  I  attempted  to  assure 
her  that  there  was  nothing  to  hear  about,  she  half -closed 


The  Lure  of  the  Orient  31 

her  eyes,  and  nuirmured,  "It  is  no  use  your  trying  to 
be  mysterious;  we  all  know  that  you  have  already  been 
at  Mrs.  A.'s  house,  and,"  she  added  in  a  hushed,  tragic 
tone,  "  we  also  know  that  you  are  a  friend,  an  old 
friend,  of  hers !" 

I  was  aghast.  The  lady  referred  to  was  the  wife  of 
a  colleague  of  mine,  lately  married.  I  had  never  seen 
the  lady  before  my  arrival  at  Constantinople,  when  her 
husband  had  introduced  me  to  her.  But  when  I  tried 
to  convey  this  information  to  my  tormentor,  she  simply 
looked  at  me,  and  repHed,  *'  Oh,  it  is  useless,  believe 
me,  quite  useless,  to  deny  what  we  all  know  so  well. 
It  is,  of  course,  very  nice  of  you,  but  then  you  cannot 
control  your  face,  and  it  lights  up  whenever  you  look 
at  Mrs.  A.!" 

This  last  phrase  proved  too  much  for  my  outraged 
feehngs,  and  I  fled  hastily,  seeking  refuge  by  the  side 
of  the  very  friend  with  whose  wife  I  had  been  accused 
of  carrying  on  an  intrigue.  I  asked  him  whether  it  was 
a  usual  occurrence  in  Constantinople  society  thus  to  be 
submitted  to  inquisition  as  to  one's  past  life.  He  laughed 
and  told  me  that  I  would  see  and  hear  far  more  mar- 
vellous things  before  I  had  done  with  the  delights  of  the 
Turkish  capital. 

And  I  did  see  them,  and  very  quickly  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  Constantinople  was  a  very  nice  place  not 
to  live  in.  I  would  have  drowned  myself  in  despair  had 
I  been  obliged  to  spend  anything  like  a  long  time  in  it. 
At  least,   I  thought  so;  but  soon  a  curious,  indolent. 


32  The  Near  East  from  Within 

satisfied  feeling  took  me  in  its  embrace.  I  began  to 
understand  the  charms  of  an  existence  spent  in  idling 
among  the  roses  and  under  the  plane  trees  which  give 
such  a  pleasant  coolness  to  that  wonderful  spot.  The 
general  feeling  of  uneasiness  which  I  had  experienced 
passed  away;  I  became  used  to  the  people,  to  their 
pecuUarities,  and  to  their  utter  disregard  of  what  we  call 
the  conventions.  I  began  also  to  understand  something 
of  the  dreamy  nature  of  the  Orientals,  and  of  that 
indifference  of  the  Turk  for  everything  that  does  not 
concern  him  personally,  as  well  as  his  utter  contempt  of 
everything  that  is  European. 

The  wives  and  womenfolk  of  the  Diplomatic  Corps 
keep  themselves  very  exclusive ;  they  do  not  care  to  mix 
with  the  Perotes.  With  the  exception  of  some  bankers 
of  high  repute,  Perotes  are  not  admitted  to  entertainments 
at  the  embassies.  I  speak  of  the  ladies,  of  course.  The 
men,  however,  of  the  Diplomatic  Corps,  especially  the 
bachelors,  do  not  refuse  to  make  excursions  into  that 
particular  world  where  one  speaks  such  remarkable  French 
and  where  Mrs.  Grundy  is  unknown.  Balls  are  given  at 
Pera  during  the  winter  which  are  magnificent  and  sump- 
tuous affairs,  and  sometimes  it  happens  that  politics  come 
to  be  discussed  at  them,  especially  when  some  Pasha  or 
Minister  honours  the  event  with  his  presence,  and  meets 
by  accident — or  more  often  design — some  foreign  ambas- 
sador bidden  to  the  function. 

It  was  during  one  of  these  festivities,  given  at  the 
house  of  a  wealthy  Armenian,   that  the  deposition  of 


Dead  Glories  and  Buried  Heroes      33 

Abdul  Hamid  was  finally  decided  upon.  At  another,  the 
Bulgarian  Minister  whispered  into  the  ear  of  his  French 
colleague  that  great  things  were  about  to  happen,  and 
that  very  likely  a  few  months  more  would  see  a  Christian 
Emperor  enter  St.  Sophia,  and  the  Mohammedan  monarch 
who  was  at  that  moment  reigning  in  Constantinople  ousted 
from  his  high  place. 

Life  in  Turkey  is  always  interesting,  even  in  its 
moments  of  supreme  idleness.  One  finds  continually 
something  to  see  and  something  to  observe  or  to  admire, 
and  to  any  student  of  human  nature  it  affords  sources 
of  enjoyment  such  as  he  meets  with  nowhere  else  in  the 
world.  For  one  thing,  it  is  so  totally  different  from 
what  one  sees  generally,  and  it  is  intermingled  with  so 
many  remembrances  of  a  great  and  warlike  past,  that  it 
cannot  fail  to  produce  a  deep  impression.  Everything 
in  the  Ottoman  Empire  speaks  about  dead  glories  and 
buried  heroes ;  of  romances  and  love  affairs  intermingled 
with  crime  and  murder,  with  women's  tears  and  men's 
vengeances. 

In  Constantinople,  a  walk  round  the  old  walls  erected 
by  Justinian  takes  one  back  to  those  days  when  Byzan- 
tium kept  the  world  chained  to  her  chariot.  The  slender, 
white  minarets  which  rise  at  every  corner,  and  meet  the 
eye  wherever  one  turns,  are  full  of  sweet  and  dreadful 
memories ;  they  rise  up  on  the  clear  horizon  of  Stamboul 
as  if  to  defy  any  conqueror  to  touch  or  to  attempt  to 
destroy  their  soft,  sad  beauty. 

In  this  landscape,  different  from  any  other,   where 

D 


34  The  Near  East  from  Within 

cypress  and  myrtle  abound,  and  where  the  roses  bloom 
all  the  year  round,  one  comes  to  look  at  things,  as  well 
as  at  men,  in  quite  a  different  light.  The  Western 
European,  used  to  brisk  views  of  life,  and  energetic  days, 
is  not  long  a  dweller  on  the  banks  of  the  Bosphorus  ere 
he  ceases  to  wonder  at  the  indifference  with  which  the 
Turk  looks  on  at  the  slow  dismemberment  of  the  mighty 
Islamic  Empire.  In  Turkey  nothing  matters  but  the  life 
of  the  day. 

What  struck  me  very  much  in  this  first  sojourn  in 
Constantinople  was  the  attitude  maintained  by  Turkish 
officials  in  regard  to  the  social  life  of  the  European 
colony.  One  saw  them  sometimes  solemnly  attending 
the  receptions  given  at  the  different  embassies,  and  eat- 
ing in  stolid  silence  the  dinners  offered  them  by  the 
influential  people  of  Pera.  They  spoke  but  little,  and 
even  the  mightiest  among  the  many  mighty  Pashas  who 
honoured  these  entertainments  with  their  presence  made 
a  point  of  appearing  to  ignore  French  or  other  languages, 
and  of  maintaining  a  studious  silence  as  far  as  they  could. 

I  felt  curious  to  know  the  reason  for  this  restraint  on 
the  part  of  people  whom  I  had  had  occasion  to  meet 
privately,  and  so  knew  that  they  spoke  English  or  French 
or  even  German  with  a  certain  fluency.  I  was  told  that 
it  proceeded  from  fear  of  spies,  who  were  expected  to 
report  all  that  they  heard  to  the  Sultan.  This  fear,  im- 
posed upon  high  Turkish  functionaries  by  anxiety  as  to 
their  personal  welfare,  had  a  restraining  influence  also  on 
the  gossip,  and  I  have  noticed  that  whenever  a  Turk 


Baksheesh,  the  Real  Ruler  35 

happened  to  be  in  a  Pera  drawing-room  conversation 
became  less  personal  and  more  charitable. 

Intrigue  permeated  the  very  atmosphere  in  Constanti- 
nople. In  a  land  where  most  things  were  to  be  bought 
or  sold,  it  is  little  wonder  if  strenuous  efforts  were  made 
to  snatch  from  the  resources  of  the  Empire  every  benefit 
that  lay  within  reach.  Everybody  believed  Turkey  to  be 
doomed  to  almost  immediate  dissolution ;  hence  all  hast- 
ened to  seize  the  spoil.  A  relentless  battle  of  wits  was 
fought  over  every  possible  concession  which  could  bring 
money  to  the  lucky  being  who  obtained  it.  Jewish 
bankers,  French  financiers,  German  capitalists,  English 
engineers,  Russian  speculators  were  to  be  met  at  every 
turn.  They  filled  the  air  with  their  vivid  stories  of  the 
blessings  which  would  accrue  to  the  Turkish  Empire  if 
only  its  rulers  consented  to  adopt  one  or  other  of  the 
wild  schemes  which  they  unfolded  before  the  eyes  of 
those  on  whose  permission  their  realisation  depended. 

Baksheesh  was  the  king  before  whom  every  head 
bowed,  and  baksheesh  was  far  more  respected  than  was 
the  Sultan  himself.  I  have  often  heard  someone  way, 
"Does  he  know  how  to  give  a  baksheesh?  "  just  in  the 
same  tone  which  we  would  have  employed  had  w^e  asked, 
"  Have  you  found  So-and-so  at  home?" 

Is  it  to  be  wondered  at,  therefore,  if  morality  in 
Turkey  seems  so  lax?  Is  it  surprising  that  at  the  period 
of  which  I  am  writing  no  one  in  Europe  believed  that  the 
Ottoman  Empire  was  capable  of  an  effort  strong  enough 
to  raise  itself  from  the  slough  of  despond  into  which  it 


36  The  Near  East  from  Within 

had  fallen,  and  that  those  who  arrived  on  the  Bosphorus 
indulged  in  avaricious  dreams  as  to  the  ultimate  fate  of 
this  beautiful  region,  for  the  possession  of  which  so  many 
ambitions  had  been  fighting  for  centuries? 

That  it  could  baflfle  all  these  intrigues,  and  assert  itself 
once  more  as  an  independent  power,  no  one  credited  save 
the  Emperor  William  II.,  who  alone  had  the  foresight — 
or,  maybe,  wiliness — to  work  out  this  deed  of  regeneration, 
and  to  discover  in  weak,  tottering  Turkey  an  ally  which, 
as  he  beUeved,  when  trained  by  German  officers,  was 
capable  of  fulfilling  the  important  part  that,  thanks  to 
untoward  events,  it  was  suddenly  called  upon  to  play. 


CHAPTER   III 

SULTAN   MOHAMMED    V 

MY  duties  in  connection  with  the  embassy  to  which  I 
was  attached  took  me  afar.  I  left  Constantinople 
for  a  considerable  time,  returned  again  for  a  few  months' 
stay  in  the  latter  half  of  1908  and  the  opening  months  of 
the  following  year,  and  after  another  long  interval  found 
myself,  for  the  third  time,  entrusted  with  a  mission  to 
Stamboul,  during  1913,  in  the  closing  days  of  the  Balkan 
wars. 

To  my  astonishment  Turkey  was  a  changed  country. 
It  had  become  appreciably  more  civilised,  though  in 
social  life  it  had  changed  but  little.  The  ladies  in 
Pera  still  gossiped,  shady  financiers  were  still  trying  to 
obtain  impossible  concessions  capable  of  taking  in  naive 
European  shareholders;  but  the  fabric  of  the  nation 
itself  had  vastly  improved.  A  certain  spirit  of  independ- 
ence had  replaced  the  abject  submission  prevalent  during 
the  reign  of  Abdul  Hamid ;  varying  pohtical  parties  had 
sprung  into  existence,  and  were  each  struggling  for 
notoriety  and  predominance ;  a  certain  freedom  of 
thought  had  established  itself.  The  Turks  seemed  to  me 
to  have  awakened  to  the  knowledge  that  it  was  not  too 

37 


38  The  Near  East  from  Within 

late  to  make  an  effort  to  become  once  more  a  factor  in 
European  politics.  The  sense  of  inferiority  which  had 
pm-sued  them  ever  since  the  days  of  Count  Ignatieff,  of 
San  Stefano  fame,  had  died  out. 

It  is  undeniable  that,  in  a  powerful  degree,  this 
rejuvenation  was  due  to  the  exertions  of  the  Young 
Turk  party,  and  especially  to  the  personality  of  Enver 
Bey  (more  recently  a  Pasha).  He  was  the  man  of 
the  hour.  He  had  succeeded,  some  months  earUer,  in 
absorbing  the  public  attention  to  an  extent  no  Turkish 
statesman  had  ever  done  before.  He  was  no  politician, 
but  simply  a  man  with  high,  though  hardly  great, 
ambitions,  who  had  spent  some  long  time  in  Germany, 
and  there  had  won  for  himself  the  warm  regard  of  the 
Emperor  Wilham  II.,  who  quickly  discerned  how  useful 
a  unit  in  his  vast  designs  Enver  could  be.  Enver  knew 
this  well  enough,  but  preserved  a  characteristic  impas- 
sivity, and  meantime  accorded  to  the  new  Sultan  an 
outward  humihty  and  deference  which  cleverly  concealed 
his  inner  feeling  of  utter  contempt  for  Abdul  Hamid's 
successor. 

To  tell  the  truth,  the  very  appearance  of  Moham- 
med v.— Mehmed  Rechad  Khan— the  present  ruler  of 
the  Ottoman  Empire,  suggests  nonentity.  Small  and 
bent,  with  sunken  eye  and  deeply  Kned  face,  an  obesity 
savouring  of  disease,  and  a  yellow,  oily  complexion,  he 
certainly  is  not  prepossessing.  There  is  Httle  of  intelli- 
gence in  his  countenance,  and  he  has  never  lost  a  hunted, 
frightened   look   as  he  surveys   his  surroundings,   as   if 


Abdul  and  Mehmed  39 

dreading  to  find  an  assassin  lurking  in  some  dark  corner, 
ready  to  strike  and  kill. 

From  the  time  of  his  birth  to  a  few  days  before  his 
accession,  Mehmed  had  been  kept  in  a  state  of  semi- 
confinement,  and  subjected  to  most  careful  surveillance, 
in  case  he  should  attempt  something  that  would  endanger 
the  safety  of  his  reigning  brother. 

Abdul  Hamid  hated  him  and  despised  him  at  the 
same  time.  He  yet  felt  afraid  to  have  him  killed — 
perhaps  because  he  imagined  that  a  stronger  and  more 
ambitious  man  would  take  his  place.  Mehmed  Rechad, 
although  he  was  reported  to  be  at  the  head  of  the 
con-^piracy  which  overthrew  the  former  Sultan,  was  in 
real  absolutely  unaware  it  was  in  progress,  for  the 
sim  reason  that  no  one  would  have  dared  to  trust  him 
witl!  secret  of  such  importance.  The  only  time  that 
plot}  s  had  tried  to  persuade  him  to  head  a  movement 
of  reform  in  the  country,  he  had  been  so  terrified  at  the 
mere  idea  that  he  hastened  to  acquaint  Abdul  Hamid 
with  all  details  of  the  intrigue. 

During  Abdul's  tenure  of  the  throne,  Mehmed 
had  been  the  object  of  cruel  ill-treatment  and  the  most 
unjust  suspicions  on  the  part  of  his  brother.  There  was 
a  time  when  he  hardly  dared  to  show  himself  in  the 
streets  of  Constantinople.  He  never  went  to  bed  without 
wondering  what  might  befall  him  during  the  night,  and 
he  carefully  affected  the  mannerisms  of  an  idiot  in  order 
to  allay  any  apprehensions  entertained  as  to  his  possible 
activity  in  political  matters. 


40  The  Near  East  from  Within 

Mehmed  Rechad  had  received  a  better  education  than 
Abdul  Hamid,  and  had  been  taught  European  languages, 
but  he  had  not  profited  by  the  lessons  which  had  been 
given  to  him,  preferring  to  spend  his  time  in  his  harem, 
whence  he  seldom  emerged.  Looking  at  him,  one  could 
not  understand  how  it  was  possible  that  this  timid  little 
man  was  able  to  boast  of  an  ancestry  as  determined  as  it 
had  been  illustrious. 

With  all  these  defects,  Mehmed  Rechad  was  yet  a 
patriot  in  his  way.  He  felt  vaguely  that  Turkey  was  in  dire 
straits,  but  though  he  never  imagined  he  could  regenerate 
his  countr}^,  yet  he  did  not  oppose  those  who  attempted 
the  task.     He  would  have  preferred  above  everything 
that  someone  should  succeed  in  rousing  the  Ottoman 
Empire,  one  who  would  be  content  to  leave  to  Mehmed 
the  credit  and  the  profit  resulting  from  the  enterprise. 
He    understood    his    personal    shortcomings,    but    felt, 
nevertheless,  comfortable  in  their  possession.     He  cer- 
tainly would  have  been  entirely  sorry  to  reform  either 
his  position,  his  character,  his  moral  outlook,   or  any- 
thing in  his  way  of  life.    He  was  proud,  too,  in  his  way  : 
proud  of  his  people,  perhaps  even  more  than  of  his  rank 
or  of  his  riches,  or  of  the  power  he  was  supposed  to 
wield  from  the  day  he  put  on  the  sword  of  Osman  at 
the  Mosque  of  Eyoub. 

When  the  messengers  came  to  tell  him  that  he  was 
Sultan,  he  at  first  refused  to  believe  it ;  his  next  thought 
was  one  of  extreme  solicitude  as  to  the  fate  of  his  brother, 
respecting  whom  he  kept  asking  for  news  and  for  assur- 


3 

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o 

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Mediha  Sultane  41 

ances  as  to  his  safety.     It  is  even  reported  that  before 
Abdul  Hamid  had  been  taken  away  from  Constantinople, 
Mehmed  Rechad  had  been  to  see  him  secretly,  and  had 
begged  his  pardon  for  having  usurped  his  place,  assur- 
ing him  that  it  had  not  been  his  fault  that  this  had 
occurred.     To  this,  it  seems,  wise  and  cunning  Abdul 
Hamid  had  replied  that  his  day  was  not  over  yet,  and 
that  the  time  would  come  when  his  brother  and  successor 
would  be  only  too  glad  to  have  the  benefit  of  his  advice. 
It  seems  that  when  the  Council  of  Ministers  heard 
about  the  visit,  they  censured  Mehmed  Rechad  severely 
for  taking  such  a  step  ;  they  even  threatened  him  with 
removal  and  imprisonment,  which  sent  him  into  a  state 
of  panic. 

Had  Rechad  been  left  to  himself,  he  would  probably 
have  refused  the  diadem  of  Islam,  but  the  iron  will  of 
one  of  his  sisters,  the  lovely  Mediha  Sultane,  proved  too 
strong  for  him.  This  Turkish  Princess  was  one  of  the 
first  women  in  Constantinople  to  adopt  European  ways 
and  manners,  and  to  preach  female  emancipation  to  her 
sisters  in  faith  and  in  misfortune.  Married  when  quite 
young  to  one  Damad  Nedjib  Pasha,  she  drank  to  the 
dregs  the  cup  of  humiliation  which  every  Turkish  girl  is 
compelled  to  taste  when  she  becomes  wedded  to  a  man 
she  has  never  seen  before  her  wedding-day. 

Damad  Nedjib  was  ambitious,  and  had  imagined  that 
his  marriage  with  a  sister  of  the  Padishah  would  ensure 
him  honours  and  dignities.  But  the  shrewd  Abdul  Hamid 
knew  him  very  well,  and  appreciated  him  still  better. 


42  The  Near  East  from  Within 

He  had  given  him  his  sister  in  order  to  win  him  over, 
but  he  did  not  hasten  to  give  Damad  Nedjib  the  im- 
portant place  to  which  he  considered  himself  entitled. 
Disappointed  in  his  ambitions,  Damad  started  out  to 
thwart  the  Sultan  with  a  recklessness  that  would  certainly 
have  ended  in  trouble  with  anyone  else  than  Abdul 
Hamid,  who  was  far  too  clever  to  show  his  irritation.  He 
managed,  instead,  to  have  it  conveyed  to  his  brother-in- 
law  that  the  only  bar  to  his  progress  was  his  wife,  who, 
according  to  the  insidious  whisperer,  was  doing  her  utmost 
to  put  obstacles  in  his  way. 

Damad  Nedjib  believed  this  tale  of  his  wife's  hate  and 
intrigue,  and,  rumour  says,  ill-treated  her  barbarously. 
Her  friends  were  indignant,  she  w^as  furious.  Not  many 
weeks  later,  after  having  drunk  a  cup  of  coffee,  her 
husband  fell  ill  and  died.  She  did  not  mourn  him  long, 
and  in  a  few  months  married  the  man  who  had  been  in 
possession  of  her  affections  for  a  considerable  time. 

Damad  Ferid  Pasha  Bouchati,  her  second  husband, 
was  of  Greek  origin.  He  had  rather  advanced  ideas  as 
to  the  social  standing  of  w^omen,  due  doubtless  to  his 
travels  in  many  lands.  Mediha  Sultane  opened  her  doors 
to  friends,  and  started  a  vigorous  propaganda  for  female 
emancipation.  The  great  influence  of  her  husband  sup- 
ported the  movement,  which  has  lately  become  prominent 
in  Turkey. 

For  some  years  Mediha  Sultane  was  a  leader  in  Con- 
stantinople, until  at  last  the  Sultan  began  to  entertain 
suspicions  that  his  sister's  popularity  had  awakened  within 


Marschall  and  M^diha  43 

her  ambitions  which  were  inimical  to  his  future.  The 
result  was  that  Abdul  Hamid,  who  was  never  a  man  to 
stick  at  trifles,  sought  a  plan  to  rid  himself  of  his  too 
progressive  sister.  Baron  von  Marschall  came  to  hear  of 
Abdul's  designs,  and  sought  to  thwart  the  plot,  and — 
being  in  Constantinople  at  that  time ;  it  was  my  second 
visit — it  became  part  of  my  duty  to  aid  in  bringing  the 
counter-plot  to  successful  issue.  Mine  was  not  a  part  in 
the  hmelight ;  nevertheless  it  carried  a  sufficient  measure 
of  responsibility  to  enable  me  to  be  fully  conversant  with 
the  details  of  this  "episode  of  Knight  Marschall,  squire 
of  dames,"  as  it  was  facetiously  called  by  one  of  the 
conspirators. 

Unfortunately  for  the  Sultan,  the  affair  happened  at 
a  moment  when  Berlin  had  begun  to  get  tired  of  the 
shifty  pohcy  of  the  Sublime  Porte.  Wilham  II.  was 
decidedly  piqued  that  more  attention  was  not  paid  by 
Abdul  Hamid  to  the  advice  which  had  been  showered 
upon  him  from  Wilhelmstrasse.  The  Sultan  was  not  at 
all  responsive  to  the  suggestions  of  the  German  Emperor, 
and  was  getting  on  his  nerves  more  than  a  little.  At  the 
same  time  the  Young  Turks  were  daily  growing  in  power, 
and  seemed  likely  any  day  to  become  the  leaders  of  the 
Ottoman  Empire — an  alliance  with  them  would  be  easy, 
and  von  Marschall  was  persuaded  in  his  own  mind  that 
it  would  profit  Germany  to  take  such  a  step. 

Accordingly,  he  cultivated  an  acquaintance  with 
Damad  Ferid  Pasha  that  soon  ripened  into  an  intimacy, 
and  at  last  gained  for  him  an  introduction  to  the  beautiful 


44  The  Near  East  from  Within 

Princess  Mediha.  He  used  his  opportunities  to  acquaint 
her  of  the  dangers  which  threatened.  She  received  the 
news  with  a  calmness  which  proved  that  she  at  least  knew 
her  brother's  nature;  but  it  roused  her  Oriental  love  of 
intrigue  and  revenge,  and  she  readily  fell  in  with  a 
suggestion  which  in  reality  was  the  first  step  in  the 
development  of  the  conspiracy  which  was  to  deprive 
Abdul  Hamid  of  his  throne  and  of  his  liberty. 

It  has  always  been  my  opinion,  and  I  mention  it  in 
passing,  that  the  present  Sultan  would  never  have  coun- 
tenanced the  plot  had  it  not  been  for  the  influence  of  his 
sister.  She  it  was' who,  on  that  dreadful  April  night  when 
the  palace  revolution  put  an  end  to  a  reign  that  had  been 
as  bloody  as  it  had  been  evil,  sat  beside  Mehmed  Rechad, 
using  all  her  powers  to  bolster  his  courage  as,  shaking  with 
terror,  he  reclined  on  his  cushions  and  wondered  what 
kind  of  death  he  was  destined  to  meet  in  a  few  moments. 
When  the  conspirators  forced  their  way  into  his  rooms, 
it  was  Mediha  who  inspired  him  to  receive  their  salute 
as  the  Sovereign  and  the  Commander  of  all  the  Faithful. 
Without  her  it  is  not  improbable  that  the  revolution 
would  never  have  taken  place,  or,  at  least,  that  it  w^ould 
not  have  put  the  present  Sultan  on  the  throne. 

It  took  Mehmed  Rechad  some  time  to  become 
famiharised  with  his  new  position.  Whenever  a  stranger 
asked  to  be  introduced  into  his  presence,  or  whenever  he 
found  himself  obliged  to  appear  at  any  public  ceremony, 
he  displayed  extreme  nervousness.  The  habits  formed 
during  his  many  years  in  bondage,  the  ever-present  sense 


Rechad  Asserts  Himself  45 

of  imminent  danger  engendered  by  the  knowledge  that 
his  life  depended  upon  the  suspicion  or  caprice  of  his 
brother,  remained  with  him  for  a  long  time  after  his 
elevation  to  the  supreme  dignity.  If  the  truth  were  told, 
Rechad  in  his  heart  neither  coveted  the  throne  nor  was 
grateful  to  his  sister  or  her  accomplices  for  their  part  in 
foisting  it  upon  him. 

At  first  he  tried  to  do  what  he  was  told,  but  gradually 
the  desire  to  assert  himself  possessed  him,  and  he  began 
to  interest  himself  in  the  affairs  of  his  vast  Empire. 
Though  no  soldier,  he  understood  how  necessary  was  a 
strong  army  for  his  country.  He  listened,  therefore, 
with  far  more  concentration  than  he  was  credited  with 
being  capable  of,  to  the  sustained  advice  from  Berlin  to 
agree  to  the  resumption  of  the  German  military  mission 
for  the  purpose  of  training  Turkish  soldiers  according  to 
German  methods  and  discipline.  The  result  was  that, 
when  matters  settled  down  after  the  revolution  of  1908, 
von  der  Goltz,  with  a  score  or  so  of  German  officers, 
continued  his  work  of  reorganisation,  until  events  led  to 
his  recall. 

Although  earlier,  when  the  Balkan  war  broke  out, 
Rechad  had  been  heard  to  express  his  regret  that  the 
military  education  of  his  troops  was  not  yet  completed, 
their  measure  of  efficiency  was  sufficient  to  cause  him, 
when  the  opportunity  arose  after  the  first  reverses  of  the 
campaign,  to  express  the  opinion  that  it  was  worth  while 
trying  to  regain  possession  of  Adrianople  whilst  the  Bul- 
garians and  the  Serbs  were  fighting  each  other.  Obedient 


46  The  Near  East  from  Within 

in  some  things  to  the  will  of  his  advisers,  especially  of 
Enver  Bey — latterly  transformed  into  Enver  Pasha — he 
showed  his  independence  in  questions  where  the  safety  of 
the  Empire  was  concerned.  He  had  remained  silent  at 
the  assassination  of  his  Grand  Vizier,  but  he  refused  to 
be  quiet  when  the  question  was  raised  as  to  whether  the 
conditions  of  the  treaty  which  gave  up  to  Bulgaria  the 
possession  of  Adrianople  should  or  should  not  be  adhered 
to.  He  showed  himself  quite  resolute,  and  with  a  deter- 
mination no  one  could  have  expected  to  find  in  his  weak 
nature,  he  not  only  accepted  the  suggestions  of  Enver  to 
begin  another  war  with  the  foes  who  had  beaten  him  a 
few  weeks  before,  but  went  so  far  as  to  review  the 
regiments  about  to  start  for  the  front,  and  in  a  neat 
little  speech  to  encourage  them  to  win  back  for  Islam 
the  shrines  from  which  they  had  been  driven  by  the  hated 
Christians. 

At  the  same  time  he  started  looking  around  for 
alliances  that  would  be  of  use  to  him  in  strengthening 
his  hold  upon  the  advantages  he  did  not  doubt  for  a 
moment  he  was  about  to  win.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  Baron  von  Marschall  was  no  longer  there  to  give 
advice  to  the  Sultan.  He  had  been  appointed  to  succeed 
Count  Metternich  in  London,  in  May,  1912,  and  after 
three  months  had  died,  his  place  being  taken  at  the 
Court  of  St.  James  by  Prince  Lichnowsky.  The  Baron's 
successor  at  Constantinople  had  not  yet  won  the  con- 
fidence of  Mehmed  Rechad,  who  in  that  difficult  moment 
turned  once  more  to  his  sister,  the  one  person  in  whom 


Imperial  Correspondence  47 

he  could  have  absolute  confidence,  and  whom  he  knew 
would  not  betray  him,  for  the  simple  reason  that  if  she 
did  so  her  own  life  would  be  in  jeopardy. 

Mediha  Sultane  was  equal  to  the  occasion.  She  told 
her  brother  that  the  only  sensible  thing  which  he  could 
do  was  to  follow  up  the  suggestions  from  Berlin  by 
writing  personally  to  the  German  Emperor,  asking  him 
to  send  another  military  mission  to  Constantinople  to 
complete  the  education  of  the  Turkish  army  begun  under 
Field-Marshal  von  der  Goltz. 

William  II.  hastened  to  reply  that  he  was  only 
too  willing  to  help  his  good  brother,  and  that  he  had 
appointed  General  Liman  von  Sanders,  who  would  start 
forthwith  for  Constantinople.  The  Emperor  added  his 
opinion  that  the  general,  being  more  conciliatory  in 
disposition  than  his  predecessor,  would  understand  better 
the  peculiarities  of  the  Turkish  character,  and  in  conse- 
quence prove  a  more  successful  instructor. 

It  was  about  that  time  that  I  was  asked  to  go  once 
more  to  the  Turkish  capital  in  order  to  judge  for  myself 
the  position  of  things  there.  To  tell  the  truth,  I  did  not 
suspect  the  importance  of  the  events  that  were  hovering 
over  our  heads,  and  did  not  foresee  the  great  catastrophe 
which  was  soon  to  overwhelm  Europe,  not  excepting 
Turkey.  I  imagined  that  I  was  required  to  do  no  more 
than  obtain  some  reliable  estimate  of  the  condition  of 
things  in  Constantinople  after  the  war  which  had  just 
come  to  an  end. 

It  turned  out  that  that  was  only  part — and  the  minor 


48  The  Near  East  from  Within 

part — of  my  mission,  and  that  I  had  been  chosen  because 
of  my  known  habit  of  observation.     Although  no  direct 
instruction  had  been  given  yet,  as  I  had  seen  Mehmed 
Rechad  in  the  earhest  days  of  his  reign,  it  was  evidently 
assumed  with  some  confidence  that  during  this  visit  my 
mind  would  be  at  work  making  comparisons  between  the 
state  of  things  then  and  now,  and  also  as  to  the  directions 
in  which  the  personality  of  Mehmed  had  shown  most 
development.     I  arrived  at  this   conclusion   quite   soon 
after  my  return  from  Stamboul,  for  I  was  interrogated 
with  elaborate  minuteness  as  to  my  impressions  of  the 
Sultan.     I  gave  a  fully  detailed  recital  of  what  I  had 
seen  and  heard,  and  what  inferences  I  drew  from  the 
various   little   political   intrigues   going   on   around    the 
Sultan,  in  which  so  many  members  of  his  family  were 
compromised.     I  informed  my  superiors,  further,  that 
there    were    some,    though    their    number   was    limited, 
who  would  not  be  sorry  to  see  Abdul  Hamid  restored. 
Mehmed  Rechad  was  considered  to  be  weak  in  character, 
and  therefore  a  source  of  danger  to  his  country.    On  this 
particular  point  I  was  subjected,  later,  to  a  yet  closer 
questioning,  as,  on  a  report  being  conveyed  to  an  august 
personage,  he  had  emphatically  retorted  that  I  was  mis- 
taken.    His  words  were,  I  was  told,  "Mehmed  is  not 
weak,  he  only  sees  the  weakness  of  his  resources ;  quite 
a  different  thing,  I  assure  you."     But  to  return  to  the 
original  cross-examination  :  I  was  asked  whether  it  were 
true    that    when    Abdul    Hamid    had    been    transferred 
from  his  Salonika  villa  to  the  Palace  of  Beylerbey,  his 


Enver  Pasha  Holds  the  Key  49 

brother  Mehmed  had  paid  him  a  visit  there,  remaining 
in  close  conversation  with  him  for  a  long  time.  I  could 
only  confirm  the  truth  of  the  rumour,  adding  that  when 
he  came  into  the  presence  of  his  predecessor  he  w^as  so 
moved  that  he  bent  down  and  kissed  his  hand,  as  he  had 
been  in  the  habit  of  doing  when  their  positions  were 
reversed. 

Thereafter  I  began  to  give  my  impressions  of 
the  personahty  of  Mehmed  Rechad,  and  to  compare  it 
with  that  of  Abdul  Hamid.  When  I  had  finished  the 
remark  was  made,  "  Perhaps  it  is  just  as  well  for  Turkey 
that  she  has  now  a  monarch  inclined  to  follow  other 
people's  advice  rather  than  his  own  will.  We  know  where 
we  are  with  the  present  Sultan,  though  this  ought  not 
to  make  us  neglect  Abdul  Hamid ;  the  moment  may  come 
when  it  will  be  more  advantageous  for  German  interest 
to  re-establish  Abdul  Hamid  on  his  throne  than  to 
preserve  good  relations  with  Mehmed  Rechad." 

Continuing,  the  principal  of  my  interrogators  con- 
cluded :  ''  At  all  events,  there  is  one  person  in  Constan- 
tinople who  wdll  keep  his  importance  for  some  time — 
Enver  Pasha.  That  man  holds  the  key  of  the  whole 
situation ;  he  is  the  man  to  w^atch  in  any  moment  of 
European  complication.  He  can  convert  into  concrete 
actions  things  about  which  Mehmed  Rechad  has  only 
some  nebulous  feeling  or  wish  that  they  might  become 
realities.  It  is  Enver  Pasha  who  can  complete  the 
reorganisation  of  the  Turkish  army  with  the  help  of 
German  officers ;  he,  too,  is  the  man  to  strike  a  blow  at 


50  The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  traditional  enemy  of  the  Ottoman  Empire— ambitious 
Russia !  And  who  knows  whether  this  may  not  become 
necessary  for  Germany's  existence  as  well  as  for  the 
welfare  of  Turkey!  Believe  me,  whatever  Fate  has  in 
store,  we  shall  not  yet  see  the  end  of  Islam." 


CHAPTER  IV 

ENVER    PASHA 

IT  is  impossible  to  refer  to  Turkey  without  mentioning 
Enver  Pasha.  In  recent  years  he  has  embodied  the 
very  soul  of  Islamic  progress.  Whatever  may  be  the 
success  of  his  policy,  however  much  his  methods  may  be 
open  to  criticism,  he  is  the  supremely  interesting  person- 
ahty  in  Turkey. 

By  his  energy  and  opportunism  this  young  artillery 
officer,  who  a  decade  ago  was  comparatively  if  not  com- 
pletely unknown  in  international  politics,  has  risen  from 
the  ranks  to  become  chief  of  the  war  administration. 
Yet  further,  he  has  made  himself  of  such  political 
importance  that  the  eyes  of  the  whole  Ottoman  Empire 
are  riveted  upon  him.  His  influence  is  far  superior  to 
the  Sultan's,  and  his  power  not  even  the  Sheikh-ul-Islam, 
that  supreme  authority  of  the  Mohammedan  world,  cares 
to  challenge. 

I  first  knew  Enver  Pasha  when  he  occupied  the 
relatively  modest  post  of  Turkish  military  attache  in 
Berlin.  In  those  days  I  thought  him  a  serious,  earnest 
young  man,  desirous  of  instructing  himself,  and  one 
who  was  a  most  careful  observer.     I  remember  that  one 

51 


52  The  Near  East  from  Within 

evening,  after  some  military  manoeuvres,  we  started  a 
conversation  that  first  touched  on  the  events  of  the  day, 
and  later  on  drifted  into  a  discussion  as  to  the  merits  of 
the  Turkish  army.  The  young  Moslem  attache  became 
suddenly  eloquent,  and  explained  to  me  that  few  soldiers 
had  been  so  maligned  as  the  Turkish  fighter.  "  People 
have  become  accustomed  to  despise  us,  too,  as  a  nation," 
he  said ;  "  it  is  the  fashion  to  speak  of  the  Turks  as  being 
in  the  last  stage  of  decay.  They  err;  there  are  strong 
indications  of  future  prosperity  for  my  country." 

"  It  is  true,"  he  continued,  "  that  our  government  is 
abominable,  but  the  moment  another  Sultan  has  replaced 
the  tyrannic  Abdul  Hamid,  everything  will  change.  We 
are  no  longer  an  apathetic  people.  On  the  contrary,  we 
have  in  our  midst  many  men  who  have  carefully  studied 
social  and  political  questions  in  Europe,  and  studied  them 
with  the  intention  of  bringing  their  knowledge  to  bear 
upon  the  development  of  Turkey.  Baksheesh,  it  is  true, 
still  flourishes ;  but,  beUeve  me,  the  moment  Turks  begin 
to  govern  their  country  in  earnest,  Parhament  no  longer 
will  be  the  dead  thing  it  is  now,  and  the  nation  will  have 
its  say  in  all  questions  affecting  its  destinies.  In  that  day 
baksheesh  will  cease  to  exist,  at  least  in  its  present 
proportions." 

Enver's  words  verged  on  the  melodramatic,  but  the 
tone  was  full  of  quiet  balance.  He  proceeded  to  justify, 
or  rather  to  explain,  the  prevalence  of  bribery  :  "  What 
gives  it  such  an  importance  now  is  the  number  of  adven- 
turous foreigners  who  have  invaded  Turkey  like  so  many 


The  Turkish  Army  53 

birds  of  prey.  When  they  are  cleared  out  things  will 
change,  and  our  people  will  be  able  to  initiate  a  policy 
of  moral  expansion,  which  is  all  that  it  needs  to  be  able 
to  hold  its  own  in  Europe. 

'*  Will  you  be  surprised  to  hear  that  the  army  is  far 
stronger  than  you  foreigners  think?  The  fanaticism 
which  in  ancient  times  made  it  perform  such  wonderful 
deeds  is  far  from  being  dead ;  it  only  slumbers.  Our  men 
are  still  ready  to  give  themselves  for  the  sacred  cause  of 
Islam.  What  we  require  is  generals  capable  of  leading 
them.  What  we  want  is  to  be  at  liberty  to  act  indepen- 
dently of  the  Great  Powers.  They  imagine  that  they  can 
control  affairs  on  the  Bosphorus,  and  so  far  have  prevented 
us  from  contracting  alliances  capable  of  supporting  our 
country  against  the  pretensions  of  any  who  want  to  appro- 
priate our  territory  before  even  we  are  vanquished.  The 
moment  that  a  man  capable  of  taking  our  lead  appears, 
and  is  courageous  enough  to  laugh  at  those  who  would 
fain  get  rid  of  him,  Turkey  is  saved.  There  will  be  a 
very  real  regret,  perhaps,  on  the  part  of  some  of  her 
present  so-called  friends  if  such  a  man  is  found,  but  I  for 
one,"  he  added,  "  firmly  believe  that  he  will  be  discovered 
one  day." 

'*  Perhaps  he  exists  already,"  I  remarked ;  "  but  what 
chance  has  he  in  the  presence  of  an  autocrat  like  Abdul 
Hamid,  who  will  never  admit  any  superiority  beyond  his 
own?" 

"Abdul  Hamid  is  not  immortal,"  retorted  Enver 
Bey,  *'  and,  besides,  events  may  prove  too  strong  for  him, 


54  The  Near  East  from  Within 

too.  Suppose,  for  instance,  that  Servia  and  Bulgaria 
were  to  declare  war  on  us,  he  would  find  himself  com- 
pelled to  have  confidence  in  someone;  he  could  hardly 
lead  his  armies  in  the  field  personally.  And  then  it  would 
be  the  victorious  general  who  had  won  the  battle  of  Islam 
who  would  dictate,  not  only  to  the  nation,  but  to  the 
Sultan  himself." 

"  Abdul  Hamid  would  have  him  murdered  at  once," 
I  retorted. 

"It  is  not  so  easy  to  murder  a  general  once  he  is 
secure  in  the  affection  of  his  troops,"  answered  the  young 
officer,  *'and  military  revolutions  have  been  seen  before 
to-day  in  Turkey.  We  still  have  troops  eager  to  be  led 
to  victory  and  to  be  granted  power.  It  will  be  with 
them  that  Abdul  Hamid  will  have  to  count,  and,  tyrant 
though  he  be,  he  could  hardly  send  to  the  gallows  those 
who  had  saved  his  country  and  his  throne  from  foreign 
aggression.     Should  he  feel  ever  tempted  to  do  so,  then 

— then "  he  paused  one  moment,  and  added  very 

slowly,  singular  pathos  vibrating  in  his  words,  "there 
are  other  members  of  our  Imperial  House  able  to  take 
upon  their  shoulders  the  burden  of  the  State*'* 

I  have  quoted  this  conversation  at  length  because  it 
seems  to  me  that  it  gives  the  note  to  the  personality  of 
Enver  Pasha,  and  proves  better  than  a  formal  character- 
sketch  could  do  of  what  and  how  deeply  he  was  thinking 
even  then.  But  he  kept  his  thoughts  to  himself,  and 
nothing  could  have  led  those  who  knew  him  superficially 
to  believe  that  he  had  within  him  the  power  to  become 


Enver  Bey  and  William  II.  55 

omnipotent  in  the  land  of  his  birth  or  even  the  quahties 
to  carry  through  a  miUtary  revohition. 

I  have  since  had  serious  reason  to  beUeve  that  Enver 
Bey  discussed  these  matters  with  the  German  Emperor 
WiUiam  II.,  with  whom  he  had  been  in  favour  from  his 
first  arrival  in  Berlin.  William  II.,  who  had  failed  in  his 
efforts  to  make  Abdul  Hamid  a  will-less  satellite  of  the 
German  Empire,  at  once  saw  the  possibilities  that  could 
arise  out  of  a  quiet  but  nevertheless  palpable  encourage- 
ment of  the  ambitious,  dashing  young  officer,  who,  whilst 
studying  the  disciphne  of  the  Prussian  army,  was  at  the 
same  time  profiting  by  all  that  he  saw,  and  was  preparing 
himself  for  the  part  which  his  ambition  and  consciousness 
of  ability  persuaded  him  he  could  take  in  the  conduct  of 
affairs  in  his  own  country. 

When  Enver  Bey  left  Berlin  it  was  with  a  cordial 
letter  of  recommendation  from  the  Emperor  to  Baron 
Marschall  von  Bieberstein,  who  in  his  turn  was  not  slow 
to  recognise  Enver  Bey's  remarkable  individuality  and  to 
make  a  close  friend  of  him.  The  intimacy  lasted  until 
the  Baron  left  Constantinople,  some  long  time  after  the 
accession  of  Mehmed  Rechad. 

When  Abdul  Hamid  was  overthrown,  and  the  ques- 
tion of  his  being  put  to  death  was  seriously  discussed, 
Enver  Bey  was  the  only  one  who  supported  the  German 
Ambassador  when  the  latter  declared  that  under  no 
condition  whatever  was  the  life  of  the  Sultan  to  be 
threatened.  The  leader  of  the  Young  Turk  party  was 
clever  enough  to  guess  the  immense  advantage  that,  in 


56  The  Near  East  from  Within 

those  first  days  of  constitutional  freedom,  it  would  be  to 
let  it  be  known  that  he  was  strongly  antagonistic  to  those 
who  wanted  to  put  the  Sultan  to  death.  His  insight 
showed  him  that  Abdul  would  be  the  more  ready  to  do 
his  bidding  if  he  understood  that  Enver  was  averse 
to  the  drastic  measure  favoured  by  certain  of  the 
revolutionaries. 

Gossip  was  very  busy  in  Constantinople  with  the 
doings  and  sayings  of  Enver  Bey  for  a  long  time,  and 
his  name  came  to  be  associated  more  than  once  with  that 
of  the  beautiful  Princess  Mediha  Sultane,  who  frequently 
had  been  heard  to  express  herself  in  enthusiastic  terms 
about  him.  Enver  Bey  was  a  handsome,  fascinating 
man,  well  read,  highly  cultivated,  and  with  wonderfully 
attractive  manners.  Notwithstanding  the  restrictions  of 
harem  life,  he  had  made  more  than  one  feminine  conquest 
in  Stamboul.  Fully  aware  that  he  was  more  feared  and 
distrusted  than  liked  by  his  comrades,  the  young  officer 
tried  to  engage  the  sympathies  of  their  wives,  in  the  hope 
this  course  might  prove  usefid  to  him  in  the  future.  He 
was  not  mistaken. 

When  Enver  Bey  put  himself  at  the  head  of  the  con- 
spiracy which  aimed  at  the  overthrow  of  Abdul  Hamid,  it 
was  through  the  influence  of  the  Princess  Mediha  that  he 
was  able  to  organise  it.  She  visited  the  German  Embassy 
when  it  was  not  prudent  for  Enver  to  be  seen  there.  He 
knew  that  every  movement  he  made  was  watched,  and 
had  to  resort  to  many  subterfuges  in  order  to  baffle  the 
curiosity  of  spies;  and  this  would  not  have  been  easy  if 


Ideals  for  the  Army  57 

he  had  not  been  helped  by  the  many  intermediaries  he 
had  managed  to  secure  among  the  fair  sex. 

When,  some  months  after  the  first  upheaval,  Abdul 
Hamid  had  been  deprived  of  his  throne,  it  was  thought 
that  Enver  Bey  would  at  once  become  a  personage  of 
vastly  greater  importance  —  that  honours  and  dignities 
would  be  showered  upon  him  —  nothing  of  the  kind 
occurred.  He  remained  a  simple  officer ;  and  though  his 
position  in  the  army  became  stronger  and  stronger,  he 
was  not  offered  any  substantial  reward  for  his  services 
by  the  new  Sultan.  Nor  did  he  seek  official  recognition ; 
his  was  a  deeper  ambition. 

Enver  Bey  was  aware,  too,  that  Mehmed  Rechad  dis- 
hked  him,  and  feared  him  not  a  little.  The  determination 
and  imperiousness  of  Enver  Bey  always  made  timid  little 
Rechad  feel  uncomfortable.  He  therefore  tried  to  keep 
him  as  far  as  possible  from  his  person,  out  of  the  dread, 
perhaps,  that  Enver  Bey  might  be  tempted  to  cause  his 
overthrow  as  he  had  in  the  case  of  Abdul  Hamid.  He 
need  have  had  no  anxiety.  Enver  Bey  had  matters  of 
much  more  personal  importance  to  occupy  him  than  the 
dethronement  of  the  Sultan  whom  his  fancy  had  put  upon 
the  throne. 

Vast  plans  absorbed  him  ;  projects  which  went  far  into 
the  future.  Enver  Bey  wanted  to  reform  the  army,  and 
to  reawaken  the  martial  spirit  which  had  lain  dormant 
during  the  reign  of  Abdul  Hamid.  He  had  faith  in 
the  worth  of  the  Turkish  soldier,  and  he  was  aware 
that  Moslem  fanaticism  only  needed  the  opportunity  to 


58  The  Near  East  from  Within 

blaze  forth  anew.  His  frequent  journeys  abroad  had  made 
him  very  well  aware  of  the  dark  designs  nourished  against 
Turkey  by  Bulgaria  and  Servia,  and  also  of  Russia's  sym- 
pathy with  Slav  ideals  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula.  He 
had  had  occasion  to  talk  with  shrewd  Tsar  Ferdinand  of 
Bulgaria,  and  had  learned  of  his  aspirations  to  become  a 
great  and  powerful  Emperor  and  to  enter  the  Cathedral 
of  St.  Sophia  as  the  Christian  Sovereign  destined  to 
restore  that  ancient  shrine  to  the  Christian  faith.  Enver 
Bey  did  not  sympathise  with  the  idea,  and  quietly  deter- 
mined to  prevent  its  ever  becoming  a  reality  should  he 
perceive  signs  of  Ferdinand  making  a  move  toward  the 
reahsation  of  the  dream.  He  did  not  wait  even  till  activity 
was  manifested  in  that  direction,  but  immediately  set  to 
work  to  strengthen  the  military  defence  of  Turkey. 

When  the  Balkan  War  of  1912  broke  out,  and  he  found 
the  Ottoman  soldiers  giving  way  before  the  Bulgars  and 
Serbs,  he  thought  it  time  to  interfere.  The  Turks  were 
yielding  ground  they  should  have  defended  to  the  last, 
and  the  precipitancy  with  w^hich  they  accepted  defeat 
scandalised  him.    He  therefore  decided  to  assert  himself. 

Curiously  enough,  just  at  this  time  certain  Ministers 
who  were  not  favourably  disposed  to  the  progressive 
methods  of  Enver  Bey  were  attacked  in  broad  daylight 
in  one  of  the  most  frequented  parts  of  Constantinople. 
I  think  some  were  killed ;  one  was,  at  any  rate,  and 
another  seriously  injured. 

Thereafter  it  became  easier  for  Enver  Bey  to  make 
felt  the  power  of  his  influence,  and  in  a  very  brief  time 


A  Grudge  Against  Russia  59 

he  became  virtually  the  master  of  Turkey.  His  first 
efforts  were  in  the  direction  of  the  army.  Convinced 
that  the  peace  signed  at  Bucharest  would  not  be  lasting, 
and  suspecting  that  before  long  a  European  war  was 
bound  to  break  out,  he  wisely  assumed  that,  properly 
utilised,  such  a  war  might  prove  the  salvation  of  Turkey. 
Imbued  with  this  idea,  he  worked  without  intermission 
at  the  reorganisation  of  the  army.  He  allowed  it  to  be 
bullied,  punished,  insulted  even,  by  its  Teutonic  chiefs ; 
but  at  the  same  time  he  kept  dangling  before  its  eyes 
the  vision  of  a  time  when  Islam  would  once  more  raise 
its  head  and  re-establish  itself  in  the  proud  position  it 
once  held  in  the  eyes  of  the  world. 

Enver  Bey  had  always  cherished  a  grudge  against 
Russia,  and  the  more  intently,  therefore,  he  watched 
the  developments  of  the  crisis  that  culminated  in  the 
Great  War  which  broke  out  in  August,  1914.  From  his 
retreat  on  the  banks  of  the  Bosphorus,  Enver  Bey  kept 
himself  informed  of  what  was  going  on  in  the  world,  and 
did  not  even  attempt  to  hide  his  sympathies  for  the 
German  cause.  He  sent  secret  messengers  to  Berlin  with 
an  offer  of  service  to  the  Kaiser,  declarmg  to  him  that 
the  forces  of  Turkey  were  at  his  disposal,  provided  he 
gave  his  promise  that  the  independence  of  that  Empire 
would  be  respected.  And  when  he  saw  that  neither 
Russia  nor  England  had  taken  him  seriously,  he  resolutely 
crossed  the  Rubicon  and  declared  on  his  own  account, 
because  none  of  his  colleagues  would  follow  him  on  such 
sHppery  ground,  that  he  was  going  to  fight  side  by  side 


6o  The  Near  East  from  Within 

with  his  Austrian  and  German  friends  until  his  beloved 
Turkey  had  been  restored  to  her  former  splendours. 

I  have  been  asked  sometimes  what  I  thought  would 
be  the  future  of  Enver  Pasha.  I  can  hardly  bring  myself 
to  think  that  he  will  ever  die  in  his  bed  like  an  ordinary 
mortal ;  the  hatred  which  he  has  created  and  the  aversion 
which  he  inspires  precludes  this  possibility  in  such  a 
country  as  Turkey.  In  the  meantime,  I  feel  that  a  man 
with  such  soaring  ambitions  w^ould  hardly  find  the  con- 
summation of  his  desire  in  the  restoration  of  Turkey  to 
its  ancient  greatness ;  he  would  not  be  human  if  he  has 
not  nursed  in  the  silence  of  his  soul  the  hope  ta  be 
able  to  do  more  than  stand  at  the  head  of  that  army  he 
has  contrived  to  rouse  out  of  its  apathy.  I  feel  perfectly 
sure  that  Enver  Pasha  has  not  forgotten  for  an  instant 
the  vow  of  vengeance  he  registered  on  the  day  when  the 
soldiers  of  the  foe  entered  the  sacred  walls  of  Adrianople, 
and  out  of  which  he  was  to  drive  them  with  such  energy. 

The  general  feeling  after  the  cessation  of  the  Balkan 
wars  was  that  Turkey  would  be  occupied  for  many  years 
to  come  in  the  rehabilitation  and  reorganisation  of  her 
fighting  forces.  And  she  certainly  did  enter  into  that 
work  with  zeal.  But  it  was  not  to  be  for  so  long  as 
people  predicted,  nor  was  the  recuperative  power  of  the 
Turkish  hosts  so  feeble  as  was  generally  assumed.  No 
one  dreamed  that  in  a  comparatively  few  months  Turkey 
could  have  sincerely  believed  that  she  had  disciplined  her 
army  to  the  extent  of  making  it  fit  to  acquit  itself  well  in 
another  encounter.    Nevertheless,  this  is  what  happened. 


Troops  Secretly  Trained  6i 

and,  as  the  Russians  found  out,  the  first  conflicts  were 
not  entirely  to  the  disadvantage  of  the  defenders  of  Islam. 
Enver  Pasha  had  been  a  wise  man  in  his  generation ;  and 
while  the  world  deluded  itself  with  the  thought  that 
he  was  absorbed  by  innumerable  palace  intrigues,  with 
secret  cunning  he  had  arranged  for  masses  of  troops  to 
be  trained  by  German  officers  forming  part  of  the  new 
mission  headed  by  General  Liman  von  Sanders  in  the 
plains  of  Asia  Minor,  where  there  was  no  one  to  tell  the 
world  of  the  rapid  progress  he  felt  convinced  they  would 
make.  His  hopes  were  not  unrealised,  and  excellently 
well-instructed  and  well-equipped  troops  went  forward  to 
the  Russian  frontier. 

Yet  another  question  has  been  asked  me  by  some — 
How  far  was  the  German  Emperor  cognisant  of  the 
military  propaganda  of  Enver  Pasha  .^  It  would  be 
unfair  to  William  II.  to  say  that  he  was  ignorant  of  the 
plans  of  Enver  Pasha  in  this  respect,  or  that  either  of 
them  failed  to  foresee  the  value  of  military  efficiency  in 
the  region  of  the  Black  Sea,  where  Russian  strength  of 
arms  was  not  great,  and  facilities  for  the  rapid  transit 
of  reinforcements  on  the  Russian  side  inadequate  to  meet 
a  sudden  emergency.  It  would  seem  almost  that  the 
contingency  had  been  very  carefully  catered  for. 


CHAPTER  V 

RUSSIAN  INFLUENCE  IN  CONSTANTINOPLE 

TONG  before  my  first  visit  to  Turkey  I  had  been  led  to 
■*— '  believe  that  all  questions  affecting  the  welfare  of  the 
Turkish  Empire  were  substantially  controlled  from  Petro- 
grad,  or  Petersburg  as  it  was  then.  So  firmly  rooted  was 
the  power  wielded  by  Russia  at  the  Sublime  Porte  that 
even  the  war  of  1877  had  been  unable  to  shake  its  domin- 
ance, though  the  findings  of  the  Berlin  Congress  certainly 
narrowed  its  range.  How  that  influence  waned  and  was 
latterly  undermined  is  one  of  the  object  lessons  of  modern 
history.  Another  long-held  belief  was  that  the  Christian 
communities  in  Pera,  Galata  and  elsewhere,  looked  to 
the  Tsar  as  their  natural  protector.  In  the  eyes  of  the 
rival  embassies,  indeed,  Russia  was  the  bugbear  that 
everyone  seemed  to  dread  and  whom  all  decided  it  were 
wise  to  watch. 

My  astonishment  was  the  greater,  therefore,  on  arriv- 
ing in  Constantinople  in  1888,  to  find  that  Russia  was 
fast  losing  ground  in  Stamboul,  and  that  the  Christian 
population,  though  giving  outward  deference  to  the 
Romanoffs,  looked  far  more  hopefully  toward  Bulgaria 

as    the    defender    of    their    interests,    should    anything 

62 


Significant  Amenities  63 

untoward  happen.  The  days  when  the  word  of  Ignatieff 
was  law  had  vanished,  and  to  all  appearance  there  was 
little  likelihood  of  their  return. 

At  first  I  felt  shy  at  these  discoveries,  and  was  reluct- 
ant to  make  even  a  distant  allusion  to  them  in  conversing 
with  officials  of  the  different  embassies  or  among  my 
friends  and  acquaintances.  I  could  not  help  noticing  how 
much  care  was  taken  always  to  solicit  and  listen  respect- 
fully to  the  opinion  of  the  Russian  diplomats,  and  yet, 
too,  with  what  unanimity  no  heed  was  taken  of  the  advice 
tendered  on  financial  and  economic  matters.  I  was  not 
slow  to  observe,  also,  that  whereas  the  invitations  to  the 
Russian  Embassy  were  always  accepted,  apologies  and 
regrets  were  sent  at  the  last  moment  from  an  embarrass- 
ingly large  proportion  of  those  in  diplomatic  circles. 
There  was  significance  in  both  circumstances. 

During  my  roamings  about  the  city  in  the  first  days 
of  my  stay  I  found  myself  in  Pera,  where  the  Greek 
community  reigns  supreme,  and  whence  the  majority  of 
the  revolutionary  movements  of  the  last  quarter  of  a 
century  have  emanated.  As  my  knowledge  of  these  folk 
increased,  and  I  made  acquaintance  with  certain  of  their 
number,  it  was  borne  in  upon  my  notice  that  the  import- 
ance of  Russia  as  a  factor  to  count  with,  or  upon,  had 
dwindled  almost  to  vanishing  point.  The  Latin  Church 
was  under  the  wing  of  France,  but  the  Greek  Orthodox 
Church,  which  of  old  had  always  looked  to  Russia,  was 
becoming  more  and  more  inclined  to  transfer  her  affec- 
tions.    After  the  war  of  the  'seventies  Count  Ignatieff 


64  The  Near  East  from  Within 

had  not  been  sparing  of  his  promises  to  conserve  the  rights 
of  the  Greek  Christians,  but  as  time  went  on  they  were 
forced  to  the  reaUsation  that  their  most  precious  interests 
were  either  overlooked  or  forgotten.  Consequently 
Russia  lost  prestige,  and  gradually  an  estrangement  set 
in.  The  leaders  of  the  Greek  Church  in  the  Ottoman 
Empire  began  to  lend  ear  to  voices  from  Belgrade  and 
Athens,  and  especially  from  Sofia,  whence  was  whispered 
the  possibility  of  securing  through  that  channel  their 
long-dreamed  deliverance  from  the  hamperings  of  the 
Turkish  yoke. 

Had  Russia  been  wise  after  the  peace  of  San  Stefano 
she  would  have  taken  particular  care  that  she  was  always 
represented  at  the  SubUme  Porte  by  men  who  thoroughly 
understood  the  situation  and  were  sufficiently  quick  of 
perception  and  bold  in  initiative  to  divert  the  tide  of 
religious  feeling  back  into  its  old  channels.  Unfortunately 
she  did  not.  Prince  Lobanoff  lacked  energy;  M. 
Zinovieff ,  though  really  a  clever  man,  had  little  influence  ; 
M.  Nelidoff  was  too  old;  and  M.  de  Giers,  who  was  in 
diplomatic  charge  at  the  time  war  was  declared  against 
the  Allies  in  1914,  was  not  blessed  either  with  rapid 
decision  or  abnormal  foresight. 

Greece  and  Bulgaria  speedily  took  advantage  of  the 
laxity  of  Russian  interest  to  advance  their  own  cause 
among  the  Christians  by  lending  a  ready  ear  to  the  com- 
plaints against  the  Sublime  Porte.  Bulgaria  especially 
was  active  in  this  propaganda.  It  had  its  own  religious 
hierarchy,  and  Ferdinand  aspired  to  be  accredited  as  the 


A  Struggle  of  Creeds  65 

supreme  protector  of  the  Orthodox  Christian  Church  in 
the  Near  East. 

With  this  in  view  the  priesthood  had  worked  very 
cleverly  to  sap  the  old  traditions  by  reason  of  which 
Russia  had  maintained  a  privileged  position  in  the  whole 
of  the  Levant,  as  the  redresser  of  the  wrongs,  not  only 
of  her  own  people,  but  also  of  all  the  other  non-Moslem 
religious  communities  in  Constantinople.  The  friendliness 
of  the  Tsar  Ferdinand  and  his  mother,  the  late  Princess 
Clementine  of  Coburg,  toward  the  Jesuits  who  gathered 
in  Bulgaria  from  the  Austrian  Roman  Catholic  communi- 
ties, made  much  easier  the  underground  work  on  the 
part  of  Bulgaria  which  characterised  the  last  decade  of 
the  nineteenth  century  and  the  opening  years  of  the 
twentieth. 

This  struggle  of  the  Roman  and  Greek  faiths  became 
more  intricate  by  the  intervention  of  Greece.  On  the 
question  of  religious  influence  there  was  constant  friction 
between  Bulgaria  and  the  Government  at  Athens,  which 
fought  for  the  extension  of  the  privileges  already  enjoyed 
by  the  Greek  Patriarch  of  Constantinople.  Between  the 
activities  of  these  two  rivals  Russia  began  to  lose  prestige. 
She  seemed,  indeed,  to  be  renouncing  of  her  own  free 
will  her  long-existing  paternal  interest  in  the  Christian 
communities.  Her  indifference  was  more  than  short- 
sighted, because  it  would  mean  that  any  interest  hence- 
forward manifested  by  Russia  on  behalf  of  the  Slav 
nationalities  in  the  Balkan  peninsula  would  be  purely 
political  in  tinge,  and  as  such  subject  to  be  contested  by 


66  The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  Balkan  races  themselves,  who  were  quite  willing  to 
be  amenable  to  the  Tsar  of  Russia  for  their  religious 
freedom,  but  who  certainly  would  never  allow  their 
political  movements  to  be  directed  by  Nicholas  II. — or 
anyone  else  than  themselves. 

I  have  dwelt  at  some  length  on  this  point  because  it 
is  really  the  key  to  the  modern  situation.  The  principal 
object  which  justified  the  presence  of  Russia  in  the  Near 
East  was  the  protection  which  she  had  given  from  time 
immemorial  to  the  Christian  subjects  of  the  Sultan. 
Having  allowed  her  influence  to  wane,  opportunity  was 
afforded  for  all  sorts  of  possibilities,  and  there  were  those 
who  were  not  slow  to  perceive  the  trend  of  affairs.  The 
Emperor  William  II.  was  early  aware  of  the  developing 
situation,  and  during  his  visit  to  the  Sultan  gathered  the 
views  of  the  leading  members  of  the  Christian  communities 
of  Constantinople.  It  did  not  escape  his  notice  that  their 
allegiance  toward  Russia  was  considerably  shaken.  The 
German  Emperor  never  lost  sight  of  that  momentous 
circumstance,  and  when  in  later  years  events  brought  a 
closer  intercourse  with  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria,  my  reading 
of  the  chain  of  events  is  that  William  II.  advised  him  to 
concentrate  his  energies  upon  the  task  of  ousting  Russia, 
thereby  to  clear  the  path  for  the  attainment  of  Ferdinand's 
dearest  wish — to  be  proclaimed  Emperor  of  a  Christian 
Turkey. 

Ferdinand  was  only  too  willing  to  accept  the  hint,  and 
immediately  set  to  work  to  initiate  with  energy  and  success 
the  policy  which  conceivably  would  have  brought  about 


A  Secret  Understanding  (y^j 

the  realisation  of  his  hopes,  had  it  not  been  for  the  timely 
support  given  to  Servia  by  Nicholas  II.  of  Russia. 

It  is  not  generally  known  that  when  the  second  Balkan 
War  broke  out,  between  Bulgaria,  Servia,  and  Greece, 
that  Servia  entered  into  a  secret  understanding  with  the 
Russian  Government.  The  affair  was  negotiated  by  one 
of  M.  Pashitch's  intimate  friends,  M.  Guentchitch,  a 
former  Servian  Minister,  who  spent  the  greater  part  of 
the  summer  of  1913  in  Petersburg.  This  fact  did  not 
remain  secret  from  Berlin,  where  it  was  recognised  b)^ 
William  II.  as  a  pronounced  danger  to  his  Near  Eastern 
policy.  To  nullify  the  effectiveness  of  this  agreement 
between  Servia  and  Russia,  the  German  Emperor  lost 
no  time  in  paving  the  way  to  a  reconciliation  between 
Ferdinand  and  Mohammed  V.,  with  the  idea  of  convincing 
them  that  their  nmtual  interests  could  best  be  served  by 
annihilating  Russian  influence  in  regions  of  the  Black  Sea 
not  within  her  own  territory. 

Baron  von  Wangenheim,  who  followed  Baron  Mar- 
schall  von  Bieberstein  at  the  Sublime  Porte,  was  at  pains 
to  ingratiate  himself  with  the  new  Sultan  and  his  advisers, 
nor  did  he  omit  to  cultivate  the  goodwill  of  Abdul.  All 
this  resulted  in  furthering  the  aims  of  German  diplomacy 
in  Constantinople  to  the  detriment  of  Russian  influence. 

During  my  last  sojourn  in  Turkey,  in  the  early  part 
of  1913,  I  had  occasion  to  call  on  M.  de  Giers,  the  Russian 
Ambassador.  He  very  cordially  invited  me  to  dine  with 
him,  and  over  coffee  we  found  ourselves  discussing  the 
burning  questions  of  the  day.    My  host  evinced  a  supreme 


68  The  Near  East  from  Within 

confidence  in  the  achievements  of  European  diplomacy, 
by  which  not  only  had  a  general  war  been  averted,  but 
its  likelihood  banished  for  ever.  M.  de  Giers  was  too 
optimistic.  He  committed  the  error  of  not  looking 
beyond  the  moment,  and  while  not  devoid  of  a  goodly 
share  of  natural  intelligence,  had  nevertheless  cultivated 
the  habit  of  never  venturing  any  decisive  step  upon  his 
own  responsibility. 

Almost  as  soon  as  he  arrived  in  Turkey  he  was  credited 
to  have  made  the  remark  that  he  would  not  allow  himself 
to  be  inveigled  into  intrigue.  His  attitude  rather  empha- 
sised that  it  was  extremely  probable  such  a  declaration 
had  fallen  from  his  lips.  The  welcoming  advances  made 
by  various  of  the  Bulgarian  leaders  and  by  representative 
men  of  the  Greek  community  were  received  most  coldly, 
and  altogether  he  conveyed  the  impression  to  the  Sublime 
Porte  that  he  considered  he  had  no  right  to  concern  him- 
self with  questions  affecting  the  internal  administration 
of  the  Turkish  Empire,  and  that  the  sole  object  of  his 
presence  was  to  keep  on  good  terms  with  the  Government 
to  which  he  was  accredited.  To  that  end  M.  de  Giers 
made  much  of  his  social  duties.  He  had  an  excellent  cook, 
entertained  with  lavish  hospitality,  and  in  his  deportment 
was  the  essence  of  politeness. 

So  far  as  my  own  observation  went,  and  from  opinions 
expressed  to  me  as  I  went  about  among  the  members  of 
the  various  embassies,  I  felt  satisfied  that  M.  de  Giers 
never  gave  serious  thought  to  the  possibihty  of  a  Prusso- 
Turkish  alliance.    It  being  part  of  my  field  of  inquiry  to 


Diplomatic  Myopia  69 

keep  an  alert  eye  on  anything  which  tended  to  reveal  the 
fluctuations  of  opinion  respecting  German  influence,  my 
senses  became  attuned,  as  it  were,  to  a  fine  pitch  of  per- 
ception. As  a  consequence  I  generally  found  my  conclu- 
sions were  justified  by  events.  Thus,  when  the  Russian 
Ambassador  opposed  the  appointment  of  General  Liman 
von  Sanders  as  the  virtual  head  of  the  Turkish  army,  he 
most  certainly  did  so  more  out  of  deference  to  his  French 
colleague  than  from  any  conviction  that  the  episode  might 
mean  anything  which  in  the  future  could  prove  dangerous 
to  his  own  country.  He  believed  that  Turkey  was  too 
weak  ever  to  provoke  a  war  with  Russia,  and  that  her 
army  was  too  disorganised  to  give  her  any  hope  of  holding 
her  own.  More  than  that,  he  was  persuaded  of  the 
unbroken  continuity  and  undiminished  strength  of  the 
friendly  feehngs  the  Ottoman  Government  entertained 
for  the  Tsar.  If  there  were  any  doubt  on  the  subject, 
it  was,  to  his  mind,  banished  for  ever  by  the  fact  that  a 
special  mission  was  sent  by  the  Sultan  to  greet  the  Tsar 
on  the  last  visit  he  made  to  Livadia  in  the  Crimea.  That, 
to  him,  was  complete  justification  of  his  faith. 

In  the  course  of  our  evening  together,  on  the  occasion 
already  referred  to,  M.  de  Giers  frequently  alluded  to 
the  topic  of  Moslem  friendship,  and  seemed  sUghtly 
surprised  when,  with  the  object  of  inducing  him  to  reveal 
himself  more  fully,  I  expressed  doubt. 

"  Why  should  Turkey  not  like  us?"  he  asked.  *'  We 
are  her  nearest  neighbour,  and  we  certainly  do  not  desire 
the  fall  of  the  Ottoman  Empire,  nor  even  a  diminution 


70  The  Near  East  from  Within 

of  its  power.  We  certainly  are  not  delighted  to  see  her 
have  German  instructors,  but  that  has  nothing  to  do  with 
our  sentiments  for  her  on  the  broad  plane.  We  also  could 
send  officers  just  as  clever  and  as  conscientious  to  train 
her  troops." 

"  Pardon  my  emphasis,"  I  replied,  "  but  do  you  ever 
feel  that  there  may  arrive  a  moment  when  international 
complications  might  tempt  Turkey  to  throw  herself 
against  you  in  the  hope  of  getting  back  some  of  her  lost 
provinces?  In  such  a  situation  it  would  be  very  natural 
for  Turkey  to  do  so." 

"Ah,  yes,"  replied  the  ambassador;  "yes,  but  you 
can  take  it  from  me  no  general  complications  will  occur, 
at  any  rate  not  for  a  long  time  to  come.  A  few  months 
ago  we  were  very  near  to  war,  but  now  I  really  do  not 
see  what  could  bring  it  about.  I  do  not  think  that  any 
monarch  in  Europe  would  dare  to  risk  such  an  adventure. 
Do  not  you  think,  too,  that  the  fevered  armaments  which 
are  being  multiplied  on  every  hand  are  the  best  guarantee 
that  we  have  entered  into  a  period  of  long  peace?" 

"  You  may  be  right,  of  course,"  was  my  reply,  "  but 
have  you  thought  that  these  very  armaments  may  become 
an  insufferable  burden,  and  that  one  or  other  of  the 
nations  may  feel  compelled  to  declare  war  in  order  to 
prevent  the  financial  strain  such  tremendous  armaments 
involves  making  life  intolerable  to  its  peoples?" 

M.  de  Giers  looked  at  me  with  the  expression  of  a 
veteran  instructing  a  novice,  a  wealth  of  self-satisfaction 
modulating  his  voice. 


A  False  Security  71 

"  Ah !  how  one  sees  that  you  are  not  a  diplomat  by 
profession,"  he  said.  "No,  beheve  iiie,  we  are  in  no 
danger  of  clouds  obscuring  the  European  sky ;  you  may 
rest  content  on  that  point." 

I  refrained  from  disturbing  the  confiding  ambassador's 
security,  but  wondered  in  the  secret  of  my  soul  what  made 
him  so  unobservant  of  the  grave  events  that  were  taking 
place  imder  his  very  eyes. 


CHAPTER  VI 

GERMAN  PRESTIGE  IN  THE  NEAR  EAST 

ENOUGH  has  been  told  in  earlier  chapters  to  give 
insight  into  the  activities  and  character  of  German 
diplomacy  in  the  Near  East.  Russia's  satisfaction  in  the 
preponderating  reality  of  her  own  influence  was  Ger- 
many's opportunity,  and,  setting  aside  any  discussion 
of  ethical  standards,  it  is  to  be  doubted  whether  any 
diplomatist  of  any  country  would  have  refrained  from 
taking  advantage  of  the  situation,  to  the  benefit  of  his 
own  nation  at  the  expense  of  Russia. 

As  we  have  seen,  Germany  had  always  been  vigilant 
and  enterprising,  and  so  was  easily  first  in  the  field. 
While  others  were  satisfied  with  themselves,  Germany 
sought  out  means  of  making  for  herself  a  position  in  the 
Levant,  and  by  using  methods  which  appealed  to  Turkish 
minds  she  succeeded. 

A  considerable  factor  in  the  rapidity  with  which 
Teutonic  influence  gained  ground  was  that  the  servants 
of  the  Fatherland  set  themselves  to  understand  the 
intricacies  of  the  Oriental  mind,  and  so  ordered  their 
conduct  that  a  minimum  of  friction  arose.     In  this  the 

Emperor  William  II.  himself  was  not  behind  his  minis- 

72 


An  Emperor's  Pilgrimage  73 

ters.  His  study  of  the  Turk  enabled  him  to  follow  to 
perfection  his  mental  and  moral  tortuousness.  It  also 
guided  him  in  his  demeanour  toward  the  Moslem. 
Appreciating  to  a  nicety  how  far  the  Turk  is  glamoured 
by  display  and  grandiloquence,  he  adjusted  the  details  of 
his  memorable  visits  to  different  domains  of  Moham- 
medanism on  the  Mediterranean.  Even  the  smallest 
incidents  were  carefully  prepared  in  advance,  with  regard 
to  the  impressions  the  Emperor  desired  to  make. 

A  notable  instance  was  the  pilgrimage  of  William  II. 
to  the  Holy  Land.  When  he  arrived  within  sight  of  the 
walls  of  Jerusalem  he  asked  to  be  shown  the  exact  spot 
whence  tradition  holds  that  Godfrey  de  Bouillon  obtained 
his  first  sight  of  the  Holy  City.  It  being  pointed  out, 
he  stood  for  some  time  gazing  on  the  sacred  city,  and 
then  expressed  a  desire  to  erect  a  monument  on  the  spot, 
"Because,"  he  added,  "it  is  fitting  that  a  memorial  to 
perpetuate  the  name  of  the  first  king  of  Jerusalem  should 
be  raised  by  the  first  German  sovereign  who  had  been 
able  to  walk  in  his  footsteps." 

The  same  Turkish  dignitary,  attached  to  the  suite  of 
the  German  Emperor,  who  told  me  this  incident,  also 
revealed  a  remarkable  proposal  William  II.  made  when 
he  paid  reverence  to  the  sanctity  of  the  Church  of  the 
Holy  Sepulchre.  As  visitors  know,  a  holy  calm  is  by 
no  means  the  prevailing  atmosphere,  and  continual  strife 
goes  on  within  the  sanctuary  between  the  various  religious 
communities.  To  the  Emperor  it  savoured  of  something 
akin  to  sacrilege  that  the  maintenance  of  order  in  the 


74  The  Near  East  from  Within 

most  holy  spot  of  Christendom  should  be  in  the  hands 
of  Mohammedans,  and  so  he  made  the  extraordinary 
inquiry  of  the  pasha  who  was  acting  as  cicerone  whether 
he  thought  it  would  be  possible  to  obtain  from  the  Sultan 
the  cession  to  Germany  of  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  includ- 
ing the  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  in  order  that  he 
might  guard  it  against  desecration.  "  It  is  not  seemly 
that  the  tomb  of  Christ  should  be  the  scene  of  continual 
strife.  If  the  Sultan  would  consent  to  make  Germany 
the  custodian  of  Jerusalem,  all  these  painful  incidents 
would  cease.  Were  his  desire  fulfilled,"  was  the  argu- 
ment, "tranquillity  would  be  restored  among  the  rival 
Christian  guides  who  roam  about  the  sacred  precincts  and 
quarrel  over  the  plundering  of  tourists  and  pilgrims." 

With  such  zeal  did  the  German  Emperor  prosecute 
this  new  idea  which  had  inflamed  his  mind  that,  despite 
the  assurance  of  the  pasha  in  question  that  the  Sultan 
would  never  lend  himself  to  such  a  scheme,  William  II. 
had  the  matter  taken  up  by  his  Foreign  Office.  The 
impracticability  of  such  a  proposal  being  seriously  put 
forward  was  so  patent  to  the  officials  in  Wilhelmstrasse 
that  the  Imperial  suggestion  was  transmitted  to  the 
Sublime  Porte  in  such  language  that  the  authorities 
accepted  the  hint  and  found  no  difficulty  in  returning 
a  decided  refusal  couched  in  polite  terms. 

This  policy  of  pomp  was  also  seen  in  active  operation 
when  William  II.  went  to  Morocco.  By  his  lavish  display 
of  the  gorgeous  trappings  of  royalty,  his  simulation  of 
reverence  for  Mohammedan  devotions,  and  his  prodigal 


William  II.  Amongst  Moors  75 

distribution  of  baksheesh,  he  achieved  a  vociferous 
populju'ity  among  the  Moors.  He  was  certainly  success- 
ful in  producing  the  impression  that  he  was  a  strong 
and  powerful  monarch.  He  showed  himself  extremely 
amiable  to  all  with  whom  he  came  into  contact.  In  the 
course  of  his  tour  he  conversed  with  many  Arabs  and 
natives,  particularly  on  the  quality  of  their  friendship 
toward  France. 

On  the  day  he  left  the  usual  complimentary  speeches 
were  made.  That  of  the  German  Emperor  was  felicitous, 
and  it  contained  some  portentous  phrases  which  were  not 
made  public ;  they  were  rash  words,  lightly  spoken,  but 
capable  of  sinister  construction  by  those  not  well  disposed 
to  the  Emperor.  He  brought  his  little  speech  to  a  close 
with  these  words  :  "I  am  going  home  delighted  with 
my  visit,  but  I  will  not  say  good-bye.  I  will  hope  that 
soon  I  may  be  able  to  come  back,  no  longer  as  a  visitor, 
but  as  the  ally  of  the  great  Turkish  Sultan  and  as  the 
best  friend  and  protector  of  Islam." 

Some  such  sentiment  as  this  he  also  expressed  at  the 
conclusion  of  his  tour  in  the  Holy  Land  a  few  years 
earlier.  The  underlying  spirit  of  these  incidents  is  a  con- 
sciousness of  the  value  to  Germany  of  Turkish  friendship, 
or  at  any  rate  her  complacency.  William  II.  was  con- 
vinced of  the  benefit  his  empire  would  derive,  if  certain 
potentialities  developed,  from  an  alliance  with  Turkey  and 
Mohammedanism,  and,  whatever  other  nationalities  may 
think  of  his  actions,  he  was  patriotic  enough — sometimes 
to  the  point  of  unwisdom — to  plan  always  for  the  future 


76  The  Near  East  from  Within 

in  his  acts  and  sayings.  Looking  backward  over  the  years 
of  his  reign,  every  observant  student  of  pohtical  evolution 
must  discern  the  truth  of  this  assertion.  The  German 
Emperor  was  not  in  close  sympathy  with  either  the  Sultan 
of  Turkey  or  the  Sultan  of  Morocco,  but  his  far  sight 
recognised  the  value  of  Moslem  friendship  should  ever 
Russia  make  a  definite  stand  against  the  growth  of  Ger- 
man influence  in  the  Balkans  or  become  fearful  of  the 
undoubted  dominance  which  Germany  had  secured  in 
Turkish  miUtary  administration.  To  have  a  Turkish  fleet 
bombarding  Odessa,  or  a  Holy  War  proclaimed  in  the 
region  of  the  Caucasus,  would  denude  Russia  of  necessary 
troops  for  the  western  frontiers — and  that  would  be  a 
trump  card. 

This  line  of  thought  is  admittedly  in  the  realm  of  the 
unprovable,  but  its  improbability  was  by  no  means  so 
illusory.  Indeed,  it  was  well  known  in  certain  circles 
in  Berlin  that  of  recent  years  the  German  Emperor  had 
the  fixed  idea  that  whereas  there  was  no  manifest  reason 
why  he  should  go  to  war  with  Russia,  yet  it  was  inevitable 
that  at  some  time  a  conflict  would  be  precipitated,  and 
that  the  contingency  was  not  made  more  remote  by  the 
existence  of  the  Franco-Russian  entente.  In  the  financial 
circles  of  Berlin  such  a  conviction  was  strongly  held,  and 
inclined  leading  financiers  to  listen  with  favour  to  schemes 
and  concessions  involving  large  monetary  speculations  in 
Turkish  regions,  but  promising  exceedingly  rich  rewards 
to  German  trade  and  industry. 

The    Turkish    upheaval,    which    culminated    in    the 


A  Temporary  Eclipse  77 

deposition  of  Abdul  Haniid,  did  not  interfere  with 
German  designs ;  indeed,  the  accession  of  Mehmed 
Rechad  and  the  rise  to  power  of  Enver  Pasha  were 
circumstances  which  tended  to  estabUsh  on  a  still  firmer 
basis  German  influence  in  Turkey.  As  the  world  knows, 
German  prestige  suffered  a  temporary  eclipse  three  or 
four  years  ago,  but  far  less  harm  than  is  generally 
imagined  was  done  to  German  influence,  which  is  very 
different  from  prestige.  It  occasioned  little  surprise, 
therefore,  to  those  who  knew  how  the  current  was 
running  under  the  surface  that,  when  war  broke  out 
between  Turkey  and  her  Slav  neighbours,  Enver  Bey,  as 
he  was  then,  requested  William  II.  to  permit  a  number 
of  German  officers  to  take  active  part  in  the  conflict. 
They  were  allowed  to  do  so,  and  their  efforts  followed 
with  close  interest.  When  Adrianople  fell,  it  is  public 
knowledge  that  the  German  Emperor  telegraphed  his 
regrets  to  the  Sultan.  What  is  not  known  outside 
a  narrow  circle  of  higher  political  agents  is  that  the 
royal  telegram  also  included  the  following  astonishing 
sentiment : 

"  I  do  not  despair  that  within  a  very  short  time  the 
ancient  shrine  of  Islam  will  be  again  in  the  possession  of 
Your  Majesty,  and  Your  Majesty  may  rest  assured  that 
I  shall  do  all  that  lies  within  my  power  in  order  that  it 
should  be  so." 

To  explain  that  the  telegram  was  in  cipher  is 
unnecessary. 

During  the   discussion   of   the   treaty   of   peace   the 


78  The  Near  East  from  Within 

German  Ambassador  in  London  received  strict  instruc- 
tions to  insist  upon  Adrianople  remaining  in  the  posses- 
sion of  the  Turks,  and  after  the  war  which  broke  out 
and  automatically  settled  the  vexed  question,  William  II. 
secured — some  say  compelled — the  acceptance  of  a  new 
military  mission.  This  mission  had  extraordinary  powers, 
but  it  was  not  commanded  by  Field-Marshal  von  der 
Goltz.  The  Emperor  was  displeased  with  him.  He  may 
have  felt  that  the  lost  prestige  referred  to  a  few  sentences 
earlier  was  because  von  der  Goltz  had  not  been  sufficiently 
diligent  in  furthering  the  cause  of  Germany. 

Be  that  as  it  may,  it  was  discovered  that  Marshal 
Liman  von  Sanders  was  entrusted  with  the  mission.  In 
Berlin  it  was  said  that  von  Sanders'  farewell  audience 
with  the  Emperor  occupied  considerably  more  time  than 
usual.  Gossip  among  a  well-informed  few  went  so  far 
as  to  say  that  the  gist  of  the  conversation  was  the  means 
whereby  a  definite  aUiance  between  Turkey  and  the 
Fatherland  was  to  be  brought  about,  and  that  the  General 
went  out  to  Turkey  in  the  belief  that  such  a  consumma- 
tion would  benefit  the  Ottoman  Empire  to  a  far  greater 
extent  than  Germany. 

I  knew  Marshal  Liman  von  Sanders.  He  was  a  most 
amiable  man,  full  of  quiet  tact,  with  excellent  manners, 
wide  military  knowledge,  and  a  thorough  understanding 
of  the  duties  he  felt  himself  called  upon  to  perform. 
When  he  arrived  in  Turkey  he  set  himself  to  work  at 
once,  and  with  sagacious  diplomacy  handled  the  delicate 
situation  with  considerable  skill.    He  was  well  aware  that 


Marshal  Liman  von  Sanders  79 

his  was  a  perilous  path — many  Turks  looked  askance  at 
him,  and  even  those  who  warmly  supported  the  idea  of 
a  German  alliance  were  decidedly  restive  at  the  fate  of 
the  Turkish  army  being  left  so  completely  in  his  hands. 
His  difficulties  were  accentuated  by  his  inability  to  speak 
the  Turkish  language,  and  he  did  not  know  sufficient  of 
his  subordinates  to  feel  quite  happy  in  trusting  them  with 
his  confidence.  Nevertheless,  with  true  Teutonic  energy 
he  applied  himself  to  the  tasks  of  overcoming  the  various 
obstacles  and  achieving  a  greater  measure  of  success  even 
than  his  predecessor  had  wrested  from  circumstance.  In 
co-operation  with  Enver  Bey  he  conceived  the  idea  of 
training  the  troops  away  from  the  eyes  of  Constantinople, 
and  accordingly  conducted  his  operations  in  the  remote- 
ness of  Asia  Minor,  where  progress  could  not  be  watched 
and  noted  by  interested  observers.  Here  his  assiduity 
was  rewarded,  and,  so  far  as  efficiency  in  drill  and  marks- 
manship are  concerned,  the  standards  of  the  German 
military  system  were  maintained.  How  far  in  actual 
warfare  the  Mohammedan  army  would  stand  the  test  was 
then  on  the  knees  of  the  gods.  One  difficulty,  however, 
was  never  overcome,  and  that  was  the  latent  hostility 
always  felt  by  the  Turkish  troops  at  being  commanded 
by  "  those  Christian  dogs." 

In  other  directions  than  the  organisation  of  the  army 
Germany  found  scope  for  exercising  her  gift  of  persever- 
ance. It  is  noteworthy  that  from  the  highest  diplomatic 
official  down  to  the  humblest  civil  servant  Berlin  seldom 
erred  in  her  selection.    One  and  all  were  solicitous  of  the 


8o  The  Near  East  from  Within 

progress  of  Germany,  knew  what  was  expected  of  them, 
and  did  their  best  to  justify  the  confidence  reposed  in 

them. 

It  is  httle  to  be  wondered  that  the  consequence  was 
that,  while  Russia  decUned  in  prestige,  German  influence 
daily  grew  more  powerful.  Constantinople  was  becoming 
persuaded  of  the  greatness  of  Germany,  of  her  paramount 
strength  in  the  world,  and,  the  greatest  asset  of  all,  of 
her  fidelity  to  those  whom  she  counted  as  friends.  Ger- 
man trade  and  German  industry  gained  considerably 
through  that  policy,  and  German  manufactures  ousted 
from  the  Turkish  markets  those  of  other  countries. 
England  maintained  her  lead,  but  showed  exceedingly 
little  increase  in  the  volume  of  trade,  while  Germany 
progressed  by  leaps  and  bounds  until,  as  compared  with 
thirty  years  ago,  her  exports  to  Turkey  showed  more 
than  a  hundredfold  increase.  Great  Britain  suddenly 
awoke  to  a  realisation  of  the  fact  that  the  bulk  of  the 
business  arising  out  of  the  development  of  commercial 
facilities  in  Turkey  was  going  in  the  direction  of  Ger- 
many, that  the  Teuton  had  taken  for  his  own  advantages 
that  which  the  Englishman  had  become  accustomed  to 
consider  exclusively  his  prerogative. 

Not  only  in  England  but  in  other  European  countries 
a  very  real  concern  was  exhibited  at  the  vast  expansion 
of  German  interests  in  the  Near  East,  not  so  much  at 
the  capture  of  the  trade,  but  at  the  circumstances  which 
made  it  possible.  Diplomats  and  consuls  engaged  them- 
selves in  fathoming  the  causes  which  had  contributed  to 


Prodigal  Bribery  8i 

the  rapid  and  wide  development,  and  out  of  these  inquiries 
grew  a  friction  which  led  to  strategy  and  provocation  in 
various  directions.  The  uneasiness  created  was  still 
agitating  the  various  influences  at  work  to  secure  lost 
ground,  or  to  maintain  the  position  gained,  as  the  case 
might  be,  when  the  possibility  of  war  began  to  be 
discussed. 

It  is  true  that  Germany  lost  considerable  prestige 
and  England  seemed  to  have  scored  a  diplomatic  victory 
during  the  last  days  of  Baron  von  MarschalFs  reign  at 
the  German  Embassy,  but  the  circumstance  only  served 
to  provide  further  stimulation  to  German  efforts,  and  in 
ways  known  to  themselves  they  were  able  ere  long  to 
emerge  from  the  cloud  as  powerful  as  ever. 

I  am  satisfied  that  this  conviction  of  progress  and 
energy  and  virility  which  German  diplomats  were  able 
to  convey  to  the  minds  of  high  Turkish  officials  was  no 
small  factor  in  bringing  the  Sublime  Porte  to  the  decision 
that  they  were  safe  in  making  with  Germany  an  alliance 
not  less  real  because  not  officially  ratified  in  the  eyes  of 
Europe.  To  the  Turk  the  Germans  were  the  masters 
of  the  West,  a  belief  strengthened  by  the  prodigality 
with  which  Berlin  poured  gold  into  the  lap  of  Turkey. 

An  intercepted  document  which  came  into  my  keep- 
ing in  1914  I  have  before  me  at  this  very  moment.  It 
is  in  the  handwriting  of  one  who  was  on  terms  of  close 
friendship  with  William  I.,  but  who  has  never  approved 
of  the  ethical  ideas  of  the  old  Emperor's  grandson.  This 
long  indictment  of  German  overtures  in  the  Near  East, 


82  The  Near  East  from  Within 

for  such  it  is,  avouched  that  the  great  reason  of  the 
SubHme  Porte  being  wiUing  to  listen  to  German  proposals 
was  that  only  Germany  had  raised  no  difficulty  whenever 
Turkey  wanted  money.  The  Ottoman  Empire  had  nearly 
exhausted  any  credit  she  had  in  France  and  England,  or 
other  European  countries,  and  her  negotiations  with 
America  had  not  been  crowned  with  success.  Germany 
proved  the  solitary  exception,  and  purses  were  opened 
to  Turkey  with  an  alacrity  which  ought  to  have  made 
her  suspicious  of  what  lurked  behind  such  apparently 
disinterested  friendship  and  generosity.  Unfortunately, 
Turkish  statesmen  were  unable  to  see  this.  Maybe  they 
feigned  blindness,  for  there  are  those  who  say  that  no 
matter  what  amount  of  solid  cash  the  Sublime  Porte 
receives,  half  of  it  goes  into  private  pockets.  Whatever 
the  reason,  the  fact  remains  that  Turkey  complacently 
allowed  the  net  to  be  woven  round  her.  In  this  way, 
the  document  states,  the  German  Emperor  prepared  his 
ground  for  an  easy  assent  on  the  part  of  Turkey  to  a 
definite  alliance.  His  foresight  had  enabled  him  to  plan 
for  such  an  issue  long  before  it  was  generally  recognised 
how  acute  the  Balkan  situation  might  become.  When, 
therefore,  Europe  awoke  to  the  danger  a  mid-European 
conflagration  might  prove  to  the  greater  nations,  Ger- 
many had  already  strongly  entrenched  herself  in  the 
friendship  of  Turkey,  and  so  gained  for  herself  a  position 
which  would  materially  benefit  her  dispositions  should  she 
become  involved  in  a  conflict. 

More  than  that  transpired  from  the  narrative  unfolded 


Immediately  Before  the  War  83 

in  the  document  from  which  I  have  been  quoting.  What 
follows  is  of  vital  moment,  as  it  refers  to  a  period 
immediately  before  the  war.  The  writer  flatly  charges 
William  II.  with  a  determination  to  bring  about  a 
rupture.  The  German  Emperor  was  apprehensive  that 
Russia  would  not  make  good  her  support  of  Servia,  and 
therefore  sent  a  confidential  messenger  to  *'  suggest  to 
Tsar  Ferdinand  at  Sofia  that,  in  case  of  a  conciliatory 
attitude  being  adopted  by  the  Russian  Government,  he 
would  find  it  to  his  advantage  to  invade  Servian 
territory." 

I  have  given  the  exact  words  just  as  they  were  set 
down.  *'  These  overtures,"  the  document  proceeds, 
"were  received  in  a  friendly  spirit,  but  Ferdinand 
declared  that  circumstances  forced  him  to  an  extreme 
reserve.  In  the  face  of  public  opinion  in  Bulgaria,  it 
would  be  impossible  for  him  to  follow  out  the  suggestion ; 
but,  should  any  '  Servian  insolence '  be  demonstrated, 
Bulgarians  would  certainly  back  up  any  firm  attitude  he 
chose  to  adopt.  In  any  case,"  the  Tsar  of  Bulgaria  is 
purported  to  have  said,  "  I  cannot  prophesy  what  is  going 
to  happen,  but  the  question  of  the  neutrality  of  Bulgaria 
need  not  be  raised  until  the  precipitation  of  a  conflict 
makes  the  matter  of  interest  to  Europe.  And  even  then 
it  will  not  need  discussing  till  later  stages  are  reached ; 
at  such  a  period  our  neutrality  may  be  more  than  a  pawn 
in  the  game." 

To  come  back  to  matters  within  my  personal  know- 
ledge, I  was  in  Berlin  when,  a  short  time  before  the  war, 


84  The  Near  East  from  Within 

Enver  Pasha  paid  a  flying  visit  to  Wilhelmstrasse.  I 
spent  an  hour  with  him  before  he  left  again  for  Con- 
stantinople. He  seemed  unusually  bright  and  happy,  in 
brisk  spirits,  and  expecting  great  things  for  his  country 
in  the  immediate  future. 

For  some  time,  he  told  me,  secret  emissaries  of  Turkey 
had  been  working  on  the  feelings  of  the  Mohammedan 
population  of  the  Caucasus,  doing  their  best  to  destroy 
every  feeling  of  respect  for  Russia.  In  Batoum,  he  said, 
speaking  with  greater  freedom  doubtless  from  his  know- 
ledge that  I  was  a  political  agent,  arms  and  ammunition 
had  been  distributed  to  the  natives.  It  was  certain,  too, 
that  the  inhabitants  of  the  Black  Sea  littoral  had  been 
won  over,  and  only  awaited  the  opportunity  to  declare 
themselves  in  favour  of  the  Turkish  cause ;  while  the 
Armenians,  aggrieved  at  Russia's  neglect,  would  not  lift 
a  little  finger  to  save  her.  "  Russia,"  added  Enver  Pasha, 
"  has  lost  the  sympathies  of  every  Slav  nation  in  the 
Balkans  except  Montenegro  and  Servia."  Continuing, 
''  At  present,"  he  said,  "Turkey  is  strongly  enthusiastic 
over  Germany." 

When  Enver  Pasha  left  Berlin  at  the  conclusion  of 
his  secret  visit,  I  took  him  to  the  station.  I  had  grown 
to  like  the  young  officer,  notwithstanding  his  many  fail- 
ings and  soaring  ambitions.  He  told  me  he  had  had  a 
long  talk  with  the  Emperor,  and  he  seemed  particularly 
cheerful  in  consequence.  More  than  once  I  have  won- 
dered what  bearing  that  talk  had  upon  subsequent  events 
on  the  Bosphorus.     Undoubtedly,  with  such  a  man  as 


A  Significant  Note  85 

Enver  Pasha,  the  situation  in  the  Near  East  would  have 
been  uppermost,  and  he  would  be  quite  unlikely  to  have 
neglected  the  opportunity  of  a  frank  conversation  with 
the  Emperor  William.  Indeed,  it  seems  to  me  that  the 
visit  to  the  German  Emperor  was  more  in  the  nature  of 
a  prearranged  consultation  than  a  fugitive  opportunity 
avidly  seized.  My  curiosity  was  yet  further  excited  when 
I  received  by  the  same  mail  which  announced  that 
Turkey  had  joined  in  the  war  a  note  in  the  handwriting 
of  Enver  Pasha,  containing  few  but  trenchant  words  : 
"  The  hour  has  struck.     May  Allah  help  us." 


CHAPTER   VII 

AMBASSADORS    AT   THE    SUBLIME   PORTE 

APOLITICAL  agent  enjoys  more  freedom  than  does 
a  diplomat.  There  is  less  restraint,  and,  if  he  is 
not  averse  to  the  small  change  of  social  gossip,  finds 
life  full  of  variety.  Without  conceit  I  can  say  that, 
when  the  call  of  service  led  me  afar,  on  my  return  to 
Constantinople  I  found  that  I  had  not  been  forgotten 
during  the  years  of  my  absence.  The  purpose  of  these 
remarks  is  not,  however,  to  emphasise  my  own  popularity, 
but  to  justify  the  statement  that  I  was  the  recipient  of 
many  a  whispered  drawing-room  confidence,  which,  added 
to  my  own  knowledge  and  observation,  has  afforded 
sufficient  groundwork  for  giving  some  outline  of  the 
personalities  of  the  various  diplomatic  figures  who  have 
held  office  in  Constantinople. 

More  than  ordinary  interest  attached  to  the  embassies 
in  Constantinople  because  the  political  atmosphere  was 
always  charged  with  possibilities  which  relieved  diplomatic 
life  on  the  Bosphorus  from  any  suspicion  of  monotony. 
It  was  the  aim,  therefore,  of  ambitious  young  men  to 
become  associated  with  the  embassy  of  their  particular 

nation  for  the  sake  of  the  experience  to  be  gained  in  the 

86 


Baron  von  Radowitz  87 

conduct  of  modern  state  politics.  This,  and  the  fact  that 
the  fashionable  resorts  near  the  Turkish  capital  were 
altogether  delightful  during  the  summer  months,  and  in 
consequence  attracted  many  notable  people,  made  Con- 
stantinople a  point  of  observation  of  unusual  interest. 

For  a  considerable  period  Baron  von  Radowitz  repre- 
sented Germany  at  the  Sublime  Porte.  He  was  a 
charming  man,  bright  in  manner,  and  clever  in  matters 
of  diplomacy.  Although  old  Prince  Gortschakov  always 
asserted  that  the  Baron  was  a  muddler,  nevertheless  von 
Radowitz  managed  to  do  substantial  work  for  his  country. 
It  is  undoubted  that  Baron  von  Radowitz  laid  the  founda- 
tions upon  which,  later,  was  built  the  close  friendship 
between  William  II.  and  Sultan  Abdul  Hamid.  This 
achievement  was  the  more  remarkable  inasmuch  as 
previously  the  relations  between  Germany  and  Turkey 
had  been  cool.  The  student  of  history  will  need  no 
telling  that  Prince  Bismarck  never  kept  secret  the  pro- 
found contempt  he  felt  for  the  Turk,  and  this  feeling 
was  shared  and  expressed  throughout  Germany.  Nor  was 
the  Sublime  Porte  ignorant  of  the  fact. 

When  William  ascended  the  throne  and  initiated 
his  policy  of  cultivating  the  friendship  of  Turkey,  his 
ambassador  found  ample  scope  for  the  exercise  of  his 
diplomatic  gifts.  It  was  certain  no  "muddler"  could 
hope  to  succeed.  Incidentally,  he  had  a  tremendously 
hard  time  of  it  at  first.  Von  der  Goltz,  it  is  true,  had 
been  at  work  with  the  army,  but  that  as  yet  was  no  great 
influence,  and  the  Turks  were  quite  willing  to  accept 


88  The  Near  East  from  Within 

favours  without  extending  a  reciprocal  friendship.  In 
spite  of  all,  and  in  the  face  of  the  added  difficulty  that 
he  had  to  perform  his  task  without  raising  suspicion  that 
it  was  in  progress,  Baron  von  Radowitz  contrived  to 
impress  upon  the  Turk  that  he,  at  least,  held  kindly  feel- 
ings toward  them.  From  this  first  step,  by  assiduous 
cultivation  of  the  right  people,  he  was  able  to  bring  the 
Sublime  Porte  to  consider  that  Germany  was  a  friend 
worth  having,  and  that  he  himself  was  finding  some 
measure  of  success  in  his  indefatigable  efforts  to  eradicate 
from  the  minds  of  his  colleagues  at  Wilhelmstrasse  the 
"false  impression  " — the  Baron's  own  delightful  euphem- 
ism— which,  much  to  his  regret,  had  hitherto  prevailed. 
If  for  nothing  else,  the  service  von  Radowitz  rendered 
to  his  country  by  turning  the  mind  of  the  Turk  toward 
Germany  gives  his  name  high  place  on  the  scroll  of 
diplomatic  fame.  Had  he  failed,  who  knows  what  may 
have  been  the  relations  between  the  two  countries  to-day  ? 
When  William  II.  made  his  triumphal  journey  to  Con- 
stantinople in  1889,  it  was  a  triumph  also  for  the  Baron. 
Some  measure  of  the  popularity  enjoyed  by  Baron  von 
Radowitz  was  owing  to  his  wife.  She  was  a  Russian  by 
birth,  and  an  vmusually  charming  woman.  Together  the 
Baron  and  his  wife  made  the  German  Embassy  a  centre 
of  social  enjoyment,  for  von  Radowitz  himself  was  a 
perfect  host,  accomplished,  entertaining,  and  a  delightful 
raconteur.  To  the  humour  of  his  anecdotes  was  added 
the  spice  of  truth,  for  he  was  an  observant  man  and  saw 
many  happenings  which  others  allowed  to  go  unnoticed. 


Banished  to  Madrid  89 

Gossip  said  that  he  possessed  that  attribute  commonly 
credited  to  diplomats,  and  good-humouredly  accepted  by 
them  almost  as  a  delicate  compliment— a  penchant  for 
unscrupiilousness.  More  tangible  gifts  were  his  extreme 
shrewdness,  his  lightning  adaptability,  his  urbane  wiliness, 
and  an  admirable  knowledge  of  human  nature.  He  used 
these  qualities  with  considerable  discernment  and  singular 
tact,  and  during  his  tenure  of  office,  at  a  period  of  excep- 
tional difficulty,  did  splendid  service  for  his  Emperor. 

Yet  for  all  that  he  felt  the  heavy  hand  of  William  II. 
when  he  ventured  to  suggest  that  certain  features  in  a 
policy  he  was  instructed  to  pursue  in  regard  to  Servia 
and  Bulgaria  were  unwise.  It  was  of  no  avail  that  his 
knowledge  of  affairs  in  the  Balkan  peninsula  gave  weight 
to  his  opinions ;  as  speedily  as  the  thunder  crash  follows 
the  flash  of  lightning,  his  remonstrance  was  answered  by 
instruction  to  take  up  an  appointment  at  Madrid.  This 
unexpected  and  unforeseen  transference  was  looked  upon 
as  a  sign  of  displeasure,  as  the  ambassadorial  post  at 
Madrid  was  considered  to  involve  much  less  responsibility 
than  at  Constantinople. 

These  events  took  place  between  my  first  and  my 
second  visits  to  the  Bosphorus.  M.  Radowitz  left  Con- 
stantinople in  1892,  and  in  1897  another  notable  diplo- 
mat, my  friend  Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein,  was 
appointed  in  succession  to  Baron  Saurma  de  Jeltsch. 

Baron  von  Marschall  had  the  advantage  of  coming  to 
Constantinople  direct  from  ministerial  duties  in  Berlin, 
in  the  course  of  which,  particularly  at  the  Foreign  Office, 


90  The  Near  East  from  Within 

he  had  attained  to  a  wide  knowledge  of  the  undercurrents 
of  German  policy  in  regard  to  the  Near  East.  This  was 
an  unquestionable  asset,  and  all  through  his  diplomatic 
service  at  the  Sublime  Porte  he  was  guided  and  helped 
by  the  fact  that  he  knew  much  of  the  inner  workings  of 
Balkan  state  affairs  and  the  measure  of  German  influence 
exerted  in  the  various  countries  of  the  group.  In  this 
way  he  was  able  to  realise  that  the  future  of  Turkey  was 
in  danger  of  being  compromised  by  the  intrigues  of  the 
smaller  states  along  her  borders  and  in  the  Balkan  area. 
He  was  also  in  a  favoured  position  when  he  arrived  at 
Constantinople  to  checkmate,  or  at  any  rate  counteract, 
these  secret  movements,  and  he  was  not  slow  in  beginning 
operations.  The  Baron  was  not  long  in  office  at  the 
embassy  ere  he  discovered  that  the  diplomats  of  other 
countries,  not  excepting  Russia,  though  not  entirely 
unaware  of  the  way  the  tide  was  flowing,  were  ignorant 
of  the  strength  of  the  current  and  of  the  potentialities  of 
the  situation. 

As  earlier  chapters  have  shown,  Bieberstein  was 
energetic  in  stemming  the  tide  by  quietly  setting  to  work 
to  strengthen  Turkey.  It  was  only  natural,  and  per- 
fectly legitimate  diplomacy,  that  he  should  make  capital 
out  of  his  efforts  by  keeping  the  Sultan  and  high  officials 
in  Turkey  in  a  continual  state  of  acknowledgment  of 
their  obligations  to  Germany  for  thus  befriending  her. 
From  that  step  to  the  definite  exercise  of  influence 
directed  to  the  establishment  of  German  control  in  certain 
departments  of  state  administration  was  not  a  superhuman 


The  Situation  in  1897  91 

task  for  a  diplomat  of  such  capabilities  and  resource  as 
Baron  von  Marschall.  What  Radowitz  began,  Bieberstein 
brought  to  fruition. 

At  the  time  the  Baron  took  office  he  found  Austria 
waiting  the  chance  to  annex   Bosnia  and   Herzegovina 
from  the  Sultan  of  Turkey,  and  moreover  was  casting 
longing   eyes   toward   Servia,   to   the  detriment   of   the 
Obrenovitch  dynasty.    His  particular  fear  so  far  as  Servia 
was  concerned  was  that  were  Austria  to  gain  her  ambition 
in  that  quarter  it  would  only  prove  a  further  menace  to 
Turkey,  which  was  unthinkable.   Circumstances  combined 
to  defeat  Baron  von  Marschall,  and  Bosnia  and  Herze- 
govina became  part  of  Austria-Hungary.     I  have  heard 
it  whispered  that  the  Baron  was  not  so  inconsolable  as 
might  have  been  expected  from  his  early  championing 
of  Turkey's  cause  against  Austria,  the  reason  being  the 
passing   of   certain   suggestions    from    Berlin    as   to    the 
modified  attitude  to  be  observed  in  regard  to  the  affairs 
of  the  Emperor  Francis  Joseph.     Be  that  as  it  may,  it 
seemed  good  policy  to  impress  upon  the  nations  of  the 
Near   East   that   Turkey  had   found  a   loyal   friend   in 
Germany,  and  was  likely,  therefore,  to  take  on  a  new 
lease  of  life.     The  effect  was  soon  observed  in  Turkey's 
renewed  prestige,   and   the   feeling   that   Germany  was 
behind  the  scenes  while  Turkey  was  in  the  limelight  threw 
cold  water  on  the  unhealthy  ambition  of  Ferdinand,  who 
was  then  a  prince  of  Bulgaria  yearning  for  a  kingdom 
of  his  own.    When  Bulgaria  declared  its  independence  in 
1908,  and  Ferdinand  found  his  ambition  realised,  he  did 


92  The  Near  East  from  Within 

not  forget  his  dislike  of  Baron  von  Bieberstein,  and  this 
feeUng  has  tinctured  Ferdinand's  feelings  in  relation  to 
Germany,  toward  whom  he  has  preserved  an  elusive 
attitude  of  fulsome  promise  of  decisions  always  to  be  made 
in  the  future. 

ISluch  to  the  dehght  of  Bieberstein,  the  feeling  of 
uncertainty  as  to  the  exact  value  of  Ferdinand's  promises 
and  the  nature  of  his  real  intentions  was  shared  by 
William  II.,  who  in  those  days  exhibited  a  lukewarm 
tolerance  for  Ferdinand.  It  can  hardly  be  described  in 
warmer  phrases,  and  even  when  the  Archduke  Franz 
Ferdinand,  who  was  fond  of  his  cousin  Ferdinand,  did 
his  best  to  bring  about  a  better  understanding  between 
Ferdinand  and  William  II.,  the  effort  did  not  succeed. 
All  this  byplay  of  circumstance  was  so  much  gained  for 
the  plans  of  von  Marschall,  whose  ambition  was  to  bring 
Turkey  into  the  Triple  Alliance.  The  forces  which  he 
hoped  would  bring  about  such  a  consummation  were 
twofold.  First,  Turkey's  acceptance  of  Germany's 
emphatic  protestations  of  disinterested  friendship,  and, 
secondly,  Turkey's  fear  of  her  neighbours. 

Baron  von  Bieberstein's  efforts  to  further  German 
interests  in  Turkey  need  no  recounting ;  they  were  so  far 
successful  that  he  brought  within  measurable  range  of 
signing  a  treaty  of  alliance  between  the  two  empires. 
From  his  advent  in  1897  all  von  Marschall's  energies 
had  been  directed  toward  securing  a  dominant  voice  in 
Turkish  affairs,  and  it  was  a  bitter  disappointment  that 
the  crowning  triumph  of  an  alliance  under  clauses  framed 


Baron  von  Wangenheim  93 

at  Wilhelmstrasse  was  frustrated  by  the  obstinacy  of 
Abdul  Hamid,  who  at  the  last  minute  refused  to  bind 
himself  by  anything  more  tangible  than  his  verbal  assur- 
ance of  support  in  the  event  of  a  war  breaking  out  in  the 
West.  When  the  astute  diplomat  was  thus  frustrated, 
he  sought  to  encompass  his  aim  through  the  instrument- 
ality of  Enver  Bey,  whose  star  was  in  the  ascendant — but 
that  is  a  story  already  told. 

Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein  was  a  big  man, 
broad  shouldered,  rugged,  and  kindly  in  appearance.  He 
was  a  clever  talker,  and  had  the  rare  quality  of  jovial 
enthusiasm  in  his  social  enjoyments.  In  conversation  he 
was  apt  to  indulge  in  humour  of  a  satirical  tinge,  but 
was  broad  minded  in  his  views,  and  possessed  of  a  quick 
intuition  which  made  him  extraordinarily  adaptable.  When 
he  was  appointed  to  London  in  the  summer  of  1912  it 
was  felt  that  he  honestly  deserved  the  reward  of  such  an 
exalted  position.  And  when  he  died,  a  few  brief  months 
after  his  appointment,  even  his  enemies,  of  whom  he 
made  many  during  his  forceful  career  at  the  Berlin 
Foreign  Oflfice,  conceded  that  a  great  man  had  passed 
away. 

I  learned  with  sincere  gratification  of  the  appointment 
of  Baron  von  Wangenheim  to  the  embassy  at  Constan- 
tinople. He  is  a  personal  friend  of  mine.  The  Emperor's 
choice  was  a  particularly  happy  one.  He  is  as  tactful  and 
enterprising  as  his  predecessor  had  been,  and  quick  at 
seizing  opportunities  which  would  prove  beneficial  to  his 
country.     During    the    Balkan    crisis    his    conduct    was 


94  The  Near  East  from  Within 

prudent  in  the  extreme,  and  even  in  the  moments  of 
greatest  tension  he  contrived  both  to  keep  cool  and  to 
mask  his  real  opinions. 

Baron  von  Wangenheim  was  a  whole-souled  believer 
in  the  Welt-politik  of  Emperor  William  II.,  and  was 
firmly  convinced  that  the  Germans  were  God's  own 
people.  It  was  under  his  reign  at  the  embassy  that  the 
secret  compact  which  Baron  von  Marschall  had  so  nearly 
brought  about  was  finally  entered  into.*  The  achievement 
gave  considerable  satisfaction  among  those  who  viewed 
with  trepidation  the  loosening  of  the  ties  of  the  Triple 
Alliance  upon  "treacherous  Italy,"  as  the  third  party  to 
the  1887  treaty  was  freely  called  at  that  time. 

Of  other  diplomats  whom  I  met  during  my  visits  to 
Constantinople,  Margrave  Pallavicini,  the  representative 
from  1906  of  our  ally  Austria,  finds  foremost  place.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Hungarian  branch  of  that  illustrious 
family  and  the  embodiment  of  polished  courthness.  He 
became  popular  almost  as  soon  as  he  took  up  residence 
at  Pera,  his  dignity  and  affability  making  his  society 
much  sought  after.  He  tried  to  put  at  ease  all  who  spoke 
to  him,  but  was  a  past  master  in  the  art  of  politely 
extinguishing  any  venturesome  person  who  attempted  to 
take  a  liberty.  At  times  his  ways  have  a  suspicion  of 
pomposity,  which  is  invariably  forgiven — because  he  is  ex- 
ceedingly rich.     His  diplomatic  labours  are  characterised 

*  Notwithstanding  the  absence  of  official  sanction,  the  intent  of  the  compact 
can  be  looked  upon  in  no  other  light  than  that  of  a  verbally  agreed  Alliance. 
At  Wilhelmstrasse  that  was  the  status  given  to  the  affair. 


M.  Louis  Bompard  95 

by  strong  common  sense,  and  he  is  an  ambassador 
with  principles. 

I  met  M.  Louis  Bompard  only  on  my  last  visit, 
though  he  had  represented  France  at  the  Sublime  Porte 
from  1909.  Previously  he  had  held  the  diplomatic  ofRce 
at  Petersburg,  a  fact  which  was  of  considerable  use  to  him 
in  watching  developments  at  Constantinople.  When  he 
came  to  the  embassy  the  work  of  overshadowing  Russian 
by  German  influence  was  wellnigh  completed,  but  he 
found  scope  for  his  energies  and  much  that  interested 
him.  Though  probably  few  would  have  called  him  bril- 
liant, M.  Bompard  was  undeniably  clever  and  possessed 
a  singularly  keen  quality  of  penetration.  I  believe  he 
discerned  more  of  the  real  situation,  and  what  were  the 
real  factors  producing  it,  than  many  a  one  who  had  been 
on  the  spot  for  years.  He  freely  condemned  European 
interference,  and  was  particularly  disdainful  of  what  he 
liked  to  call  "  Harem  intrigues."  And  because  he  held 
himself  aloof  from  every  kind  of  intrigue,  he  gained  the 
sincere  respect  of  the  pashas  and  other  officers  who  were 
the  private  advisers  of  the  Sultan. 

Mehmed  Rechad  had  been  three  months  on  the  throne 
when  M.  Bompard  arrived  in  Berlin,  which  meant  that  the 
French  ambassador  missed  the  revolution.  He  was  not 
sorry  to  leave  Petersburg,  where  he  paid  the  social  penalty 
of  following  an  exceedingly  rich  ambassador  who  enter- 
tained lavishly  and  who  was  of  high  birth.  Nevertheless, 
he  was  staunch  and  unwavering  in  his  sympathies  for 
Russia  as  a  nation,  and  did  the  best  he  could  to  act  in 


96  The  Near  East  from  Within 

harmony  with  the  Tsar's  representative  on  all  the  grave 
and  important  questions  that  arose  during  his  sojourn  in 
Turkey. 

Although  personally,  as  a  political  agent  seeking  ever 
to  further  the  interests  of  my  own  country,  I  could  do 
nothing  but  rejoice  at  the  outcome,  I  often  felt  that 
M.  Bompard  was  hampered,  and  secretly  vexed,  at  the 
want  of  appreciation  with  which  his  Russian  colleague 
met  his  efforts.  More  than  once  when  the  Frenchman 
proposed  some  joint  representation  which  he  felt  it  neces- 
sary for  their  common  interests  that  they  should  make  to 
the  Sublime  Porte,  he  found  M.  de  Giers  unwilling  to 
do  so.  Not  from  any  unfriendliness,  but  from  what  was 
more  galling  still  to  M.  Bompard,  a  refusal  to  recognise 
any  need  to  disturb  the  contentment  which — because  it 
seemed  so  on  the  surface — the  Russian  ambassador  was 
satisfied  really  prevailed.  M.  de  Giers  was  far  too  optim- 
istic for  his  French  colleague's  peace  of  mind. 

Before  I  understood  the  personality  of  M.  Bompard 
I  ventured  to  ask  his  opinion  of  the  future  development 
of  Turkey,  and  what  part  she  would  play  in  the  event  of 
trouble  ever  arising  between  the  Triple  Alliance  and  the 
triple  understanding.  The  incident  took  place  in  the 
spring  of  1913,  about  a  week  after  I  had  arrived  in  Con- 
stantinople. We  found  ourselves  smoking  cigarettes 
together  whilst  we  looked  out  over  the  Bosphorus  after 
a  dinner  to  which  a  society  hostess  had  invited  us.  I  did 
not  attempt  the  experiment  again.  The  diplomat's 
manner  warned  me  it  might  be  dangerous.     His  clear, 


Sir  Louis  Mallet  97 

serious  eyes  seemed  to  read  one  through,  and  he  gave 
one  the  impression  of  having  immediately  divined  the 
underlying  motive  for  putting  a  leading  question.  I  have 
been  told,  and  I  quite  believe  it,  that  when  the  European 
crisis  arose,  M.  Bompard  very  nearly  persuaded  the 
Ottoman  Government  to  remain  neutral.  Such  an 
eventuality  would  have  destroyed  the  years  of  patient 
fostering  of  German  interest  and  influence.  Yet,  not- 
withstanding all,  at  one  moment  it  seemed  imminent  that 
Turkey  would  forget  all  that  Germany  had  done  for  her 
and  in  the  face  of  well-defined  moral  obligations  have 
remained  passive  at  a  moment  when  her  adherence  ta 
all  the  protestation  of  friendship  she  had  made  was  vital. 
M.  Bompard  did  not  succeed.  By  expedients  familiar  to 
German  diplomacy.  Baron  von  Wangenheim  turned  the 
scales  in  favour  of  his  country. 

I  did  not  see  much  of  Sir  Louis  Mallet,  the  repre- 
sentative of  King  George  V.  He  had  a  great  name 
for  cleverness  and  boasted  of  considerable  political  experi- 
ence, besides  being  a  very  amiable,  pleasant,  and  agreeable 
man.  He  had  the  reputation,  too,  of  being  a  keen 
observer.  The  German  Emperor,  I  am  aware,  hated  him, 
because,  having  had  occasion  to  see  Sir  Louis  in  London, 
Sir  Louis  had  been  rude  to  him  in  the  way  of  showing 
too  plainly  to  William  II.  how  very  little  value  he  placed 
on  the  protestations  of  friendship  for  England  which  the 
German  sovereign  boasted. 

Among  other  diplomats  with  whom  I  became 
acquainted   at   Constantinople,   the   Italian   ambassador, 

H 


98  The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  Marquis  Garroni,  was  a  perfect  type.  Though  he 
occupied  a  post  which  was  most  important  in  view  of  the 
different  questions  still  being  discussed  between  Italy  and 
Turkey,  he  did  not  seem  to  worry  much  about  them, 
and  took  life  most  easily,  which  perhaps  was  the  best 
thing  he  could  do  under  the  circumstances.  I  did  not 
care  much  for  him,  and,  besides,  I  had  been  warned  in 
Berlin  not  to  allow  myself  to  be  drawn  into  an  intimacy 
with  him,  and  especially  recommended  not  to  allow  him 
to  guess  that  the  question  of  a  German-Turkish  aUiance 
was  or  had  ever  been  in  question. 

Perhaps  the  only  ambassador  who  could  boast  of 
perfect  knowledge  of  Eastern  life  and  Eastern  politics 
was  the  Dutch  minister.  Dr.  van  der  Does  de  Villebois, 
who,  thanks  to  his  long  sojourn  in  Egypt,  which  had 
preceded  his  appointment  in  Constantinople,  had  acquired 
an  unrivalled  experience  that  was  to  be  envied  concerning 
Oriental  manners,  customs,  and  intrigues. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    SHEIKH-UL-ISLAM    AND     RELIGIOUS    FANATICISM 

CONTRARY  to  the  general  belief,  Turks,  as  a  rule, 
are  not  fanatics;  they  show  themselves  so  tolerant 
in  religious  matters  that,  with  advantage,  their  example 
might  be  followed  by  a  good  many  Christians  Legends 
which  represent  them  as  thirsting  for  the  blood  of 
the  infidel  are  just  legends  and  nothing  more.  The  last 
war  which  took  place  between  Turkey  and  Servia  and 
Bulgaria  proved  with  evidence  that  both  parties  were 
fighting  for  political  supremacy,  and  not  for  the  faith 
which  they  professed.  And  as  for  the  atrocities  com- 
mitted during  its  course,  they  were  performed  by  all 
parties  without  exception.  The  Bulgarians,  for  instance, 
pillaged,  and  destroyed,  and  burned ;  they  killed  without 
discrimination,  and  showed  themselves  as  ferocious  as 
they  were  pitiless.  More  than  once  the  victims  which 
they  left  behind  them  wherever  they  went  were  picked 
up  and  cared  for  by  the  Turks,  whom  they  had  tried  to 
represent  as  merciless  in  regard  to  the  Christians. 

In  political  matters  the  Turks  are  quite  willing  to 
live  and  let  live,  but  they  do  not  admit  any  encroachment 
on   the   traditions   which   in  bygone   times   made   them 

99 


100 


The  Near  East  from  Within 


great.  They  believe  that  an  hour  will  come  when  the 
crescent  shall  once  more  rise  triumphant  in  countries 
where  of  old  it  reigned  supreme,  and  that  the  last  day 
of  Islam  has  not  risen  yet.  They  have  a  constant  indig- 
nation at  the  servitude  to  which  the  followers  of  the 
prophet  are  condemned  in  Egv^pt,  India,  Central  Asia, 
and  French  territory  in  Africa.  This  sentiment  is 
genuine ;  they  lament  over  it  and  weep  over  the  degra- 
dation of  their  race  and  of  their  faith.  In  their  religious 
fervour  they  have  remained  the  same  as  of  old ;  they  are 
ever  ready  to  respond  to  the  call  of  those  who  know 
how  to  appeal  to  that  trait  in  their  character.  The  fate 
of  their  country  might  under  certain  circumstances  have 
left  them  indifferent,  whilst  the  danger  of  Islam  will 
always  succeed  in  rousing  them  either  to  great  deeds  or 
to  strong  actions. 

Lately,  and  especially  since  the  accession  of  the  present 
Sultan,  those  feelings  came  rather  to  the  front  owing  to 
the  influence  of  the  Sheikh-ul-Islam  and  the  leaders  of 
the  dancing  and  howling  dervishes  of  Constantinople. 
In  order  to  consolidate  his  own  position,  Rechad  felt 
himself  compelled  to  stand  up  as  the  protector  of  all 
Moslems.  The  Emperor  William,  being  made  aware  of 
this,  had  not  neglected  to  wield  influence  in  Constanti- 
nople through  such  channels.  Unknown  even  to  his  own 
ambassadors,  because  it  was  only  towards  the  end  of  his 
sojourn  in  Turkey  that  Baron  von  Marschall  had  become 
aware  of  it,  he  had  entered  into  relations  with  the  Sheikh- 
ul-Islam.    He  had  even  been  in  correspondence  with  the 


The  Howling  Dervishes  loi 

sheikh  of  the  hovvhng  dervishes,  a  personage  of  vast 
influence.  The  sheikh  was  a  man  already  advanced  in 
years,  with  a  venerable  countenance,  whose  austerity  of 
life  had  brought  him  into  great  reputation  among  the 
poorer  classes  of  Constantinople.  At  a  sign  thousands  of 
people  w^ould  follow  him  to  the  ends  of  the  earth.  A 
word  uttered  by  him  was  sufficient  to  provoke  or  to 
appease  a  rebellion,  and  more  than  once  his  intervention 
had  saved  Abdul  Hamid  from  the  fate  which  only  befell 
him  because  he  had  not  sufficiently  taken  into  account 
the  importance  of  that  leader  of  the  religious  party  in 
Turkey,  and  had  slighted  him  on  several  occasions.  The 
sheikh  was  a  most  vindictive  individual  by  nature,  and 
he  never  forgot  or  forgave  an  injury.  He  had  had 
occasion  to  ask  Abdul  Hamid  to  appoint  one  of  his 
relatives  as  aide-de-camp  to  His  Majesty.  But  Abdul 
did  not  care  to  have  close  to  his  person  anyone  belonging 
to  the  immediate  surroundings  of  the  sheikh,  and  refused 
the  request  in  language  of  unnecessary  violence.  This 
was  sufficient  to  set  against  him  that  august  personage, 
and  from  that  day  his  fate  was  sealed,  and  his  deposition 
became  a  matter  of  time. 

The  Emperor,  who  had  been  kept  informed  as  to  the 
smallest  details  connected  with  this  quarrel,  thought  it 
opportune  to  interfere.  It  was  only  then  that  Baron 
von  Marschall  was  ordered  to  go  and  pay  personally  his 
respects  to  the  sheikh,  and  to  discuss  together  with  him 
certain  questions  inimical  to  Abdul  Hamid.  In  this  way 
the  Baron  learned  of  what  had  long  been  in  progress. 


102         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Clever  as  he  was,  he  had  not  suspected  the  secret,  nor 
did  he  at  first  grasp  its  inner  meaning.  But  when  von 
Marschall  was  told  later  on  to  use  his  endeavours  to 
cultivate  the  friendship  of  the  Khedive  of  Egypt,  who 
used  to  spend  part  of  the  summer  in  Constantinople,  he 
began  to  understand  what  lay  at  the  root  of  these  assur- 
ances of  friendship  which  the  German  Emperor  was  so 
eager  to  have  transmitted  to  these  people,  whom  he  had 
never  seen  in  his  life,  but  whose  co-operation  he  was  so 
anxious  to  secure. 

Another  powerful  personage  was  the  Sheikh-ul-Islam. 
Essad  Effendi,  who  then  occupied  that  important  position, 
was  domineering  by  nature,  but  he  had  great  intellectual 
faculties,  a  keen  taste  for  intrigue,  and  the  wish  to  be 
consulted  in  every  important  political  decision  in  which 
the  interests  of  his  country  were  concerned.  He  believed 
himself  to  be  a  leader  of  men,  which  he  certainly  was 
by  virtue  of  the  great  religious  power  which  he  wielded. 
He  disliked  Abdul  Hamid,  more  for  the  latter 's  cruelties 
than  from  any  personal  feeling,  whilst  he  had  always 
nursed  a  certain  amount  of  pity  for  the  miserable, 
persecuted  Mehmed  Rechad.  It  is  not  surprising,  there- 
fore, that  he  entered  with  alacrity  into  the  conspiracy 
which  aimed  at  dispossessing  the  Sultan  of  his  crown. 
Essad  Effendi  was  generally  liked,  and  even  had  few 
enemies.  His  ambition  was  enormous,  and  he  did  not 
make  a  secret  of  the  fact  that  he  aspired  to  be  the  instru- 
ment by  which  Moslems  would  at  last  be  reunited  under 
the  sceptre  of  the  Commander  of  the  Faithful. 


Overtures  to  William  11.  103 

It  is  not  generally  known  that  it  was  the  Sheikh-ul- 
Islam  who  made  overtures  of  friendship  to  the  German 
Emperor,  and  not  vice  versa.  He  had  been  excessively 
impressed  by  the  personality  of  William  II.,  and  by  the 
pomp  which  had  attended  his  famous  visit  to  Abdul 
Hamid.  Essad  Effendi,  who  was  not  Sheikh-ul-Islam  at 
that  time,  formed  a  good  idea  of  the  strength  of  Turkey's 
new  friend.  He  saw  at  once  that  with  the  exercise  of 
a  little  diplomacy  he  might  secure  for  himself,  as  well 
as  for  his  country,  the  promise  that,  whatever  happened 
later  on,  neither  he  nor  they  would  be  forsaken  by  the 
Protestant  monarch  whose  protection  they  had  succeeded 
in  winning. 

Essad  Effendi,  ever  since  the  outbreak  of  the  first 
Balkan  war,  had  worked  upon  the  mind  of  the  Sultan  and 
done  his  best  to  make  Rechad  enter  into  the  spirit  of 
the  Mohammedan  crusade  which  he  preached.  It  was 
partly  through  his  intervention  that,  when  hostilities 
broke  out  between  Germany  and  Russia,  the  Turkish 
Government  ceased  to  keep  secret  its  hostility  in  regard 
to  the  Russians.  He  played  upon  the  ambition  of 
Mehmed  Rechad,  and  tried  to  inspire  him  with  the  desire 
to  deliver  his  persecuted  brothers  and  proclaim  himself  as 
head  of  a  vast  Moslem  state  which  should  include  all 
Mohammedans  in  the  world.  Under  the  glamour  of  this 
influence  the  spirit  of  the  Egyptian  Mahdi  began  to  stir 
in  Essad's  bosom.  He  dreamt  of  a  day  when  he  would 
be  able  to  restore  Egypt  to  its  former  position,  and,  being 
practical  to  an  unconniion  degree,  quite  appreciated  the 


104         The  Near  East  from  Within 

advantage  it  would  be  to  him  to  gain  possession  also  of 
the  Suez  Canal. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  war,  therefore,  the  Sultan, 
helped  by  the  advice  of  the  sheikh  of  the  dervishes 
and  of  Essad  Effendi,  determined  to  make  full  use 
of  this  wonderful  opportunity  which  was  given  to  him 
so  unexpectedly,  and  forthwith  started  to  proclaim 
the  Holy  War  against  the  infidels,  causing  to  be  dis- 
played the  green  flag  of  the  Prophet,  an  event  almost 
unprecedented  in  the  history  of  Turkey  in  modern  times. 

The  call  was  responded  to  with  enthusiasm,  and  from 
all  parts  of  Asia  Minor  and  the  Arabian  Desert  men 
came  pouring  in,  eager  to  join  the  army  that  was  being 
assembled  to  fight  against  the  unbelievers. 

William  II.  rejoiced  to  find  that  his  cherished  hopes 
were  on  the  way  to  fulfilment,  and  that  if  Italy  abandoned 
him,  Turkey  would  prove  faithful.  He  knew  that  he  had 
been  suspected  of  intriguing  at  Constantinople  against 
the  Tsar  and  against  Russian  influence,  and  it  had  always 
angered  him  to  hear  people  making  allusion  to  that  fact, 
because  he  had  always  the  fear  that  the  example  of  Abdul 
Hamid  might  be  imitated  by  his  brother  and  successor, 
and  that  at  the  crucial  moment  the  latter  would  hesitate 
to  plunge  his  country  into  such  an  adventure.  He  must, 
therefore,  have  rejoiced  considerably  when  at  last  Mehmed 
Rechad  decided  to  unfold  the  sacred  banner  of  Islam 
against  Orthodox  Russia. 

It  is  a  curious  trick  of  circumstance  that  we  behold 
the    strange    spectacle    of    Protestant    Prussia    fighting 


Combating  Faiths  105 

together  with  Moslem  hosts  against  Cathohc  France, 
Buddhist  Japan,  Orthodox  Greek  Russia,  and  Christian 
England.  Amidst  the  many  wonders  of  an  age  of 
wonders  it  is  one  of  the  most  interesting,  and  also, 
perhaps,  one  of  the  most  dangerous,  omens  to  the  future 
peace  of  the  world. 


CHAPTER   IX 

KHEDIVE   ABBAS    HILMI 

IN  an  earlier  chapter  I  made  a  passing  reference  to 
the  relations  between  Sultan  Abdul  Hamid  and  the 
young  Khedive  of  Egypt.  On  my  first  Eastern  visit  I 
had  occasion  to  go  to  Egypt  from  Constantinople,  and 
there  learned  many  interesting  things.  I  knew  earlier 
that  as  soon  as  he  ascended  the  throne  William  II.  did 
his  best  to  cultivate  the  friendship  of  Moslem  Egypt. 
Tewfik  Pasha  was  still  alive  at  that  time,  and  he  did  not 
respond  to  the  advances  of  Germany  with  as  much  readi- 
ness as  might  have  been  supposed  or  expected.  He  was 
a  very  shrewd  man  in  spite  of  his  apparent  heaviness,  and 
he  was  moreover  entirely  convinced  that  English  influence 
and  English  interests  were  best  for  his  country  and  him- 
self. He  realised  that  any  attempt  to  throw  off  the 
English  yoke  would  have  the  direst  consequences.  He 
therefore  cultivated  a  spirit  of  absolute  agreement  with 
Lord  Cromer,  who  at  that  time  filled  with  much  distinc- 
tion the  delicate  functions  of  English  Agent-General  in 
Egypt. 

Lord    Cromer    appreciated    the    deference    of    the 

Khedive,  and  at  the  same  time  was  very  well  aware  of 

io6 


A  Rebuff  to  William  II.  107 

the  considerable  support  Tewfik  Pasha  could  give  against 
the  intrigues  of  the  so-called  French  party  which  aspired 
at  the  time  to  gain  the  upper  hand  in  questions  concern- 
ing the  interior  administration  of  Egypt.  This  course 
on  the  part  of  Lord  Cromer  was  well  advised,  as  the 
French  party  was  secretly  supported  by  no  less  a  personage 
than  the  famous  Nubar  Pasha,  who  was  Prime  Minister 
during  the  greater  part  of  the  reign  of  Tewfik.  Under 
these  conditions  the  advances  of  the  young  German 
Emperor  encountered  considerable  coolness,  and  when 
he  caused  tentative  inquiries  to  be  made  of  certain 
members  of  the  Egyptian  native  administration  as  to  the 
degree  of  welcome  a  visit  of  his  in  Cairo  would  receive, 
the  idea  was  met  with  distinct  disapproval. 

Tewfik  sought  the  advice  of  Lord  Cromer,  who  found 
it  easy' to  explain  that  it  would  be  to  the  advantage  of  no 
one  if  the  German  engineers,  who  would  undoubtedly 
have  accompanied  William  11. ,  could  have  the  oppor- 
tunity to  examine  in  detail  all  the  improvements  which 
England  had  in  progress  in  order  to  facilitate  the  develop- 
ment of  agriculture  in  that  country,  and  the  different 
measures  of  safety  which  had  been  adopted  to  preserve 
the  integrity  of  the  Suez  Canal.  The  Emperor  was 
therefore  given  most  respectfully  and  most  courteously 
to  understand  that  his  arrival  in  Egypt  would  not  be 
considered  opportune,  and  the  honour  of  his  presence 
there  was  therefore  declined  with  abundant  thanks. 

This  was  all  explained  to  me  in  a  spirit  of  malicious 
glee  by  an  effendi  who  knew  my  nationality,  and  hoped 


io8        The  Near  East  from  Within 

to  have  the  satisfaction  of  watching  my  discomfiture.  I 
flatter  myself  that  I  successfully  concealed  my  emotions. 

The  incident  was  not  without  its  value  to  me,  as  I 
was  able  to  report  to  Berlin  the  underlying  fears  which 
had  dictated  the  polite  refusal.  Later  I  was  told  that 
the  knowledge  did  not  please  Emperor  WiUiam,  who 
felt  the  affront  very  keenly.  I  would  not  do  more  than 
make  the  statement  with  all  reserve,  but  I  was  definitely 
informed  that  the  German  Emperor  has  hated  Lord 
Cromer  ever  since,  and  the  hatred  w^ent  so  far  that  he 
actually  inspired,  and  in  one  or  two  instances  corrected 
with  his  own  hand,  newspaper  articles  in  which  the  great 
English  pro-consul  was  bitterly  maligned. 

Concurrently  with  the  permeation  of  Turkish  official 
circles  with  German  influence,  attempts  were  made  to 
secure  the  sympathies  of  several  people  in  Egypt  who 
viewed  with  dissatisfaction  the  progress  of  Enghsh 
influence.  In  due  course,  even  among  the  Khedive's 
immediate  surroundings,  champions  were  secured  who 
began  to  insinuate  to  Tewfik  that  after  all  he  was  allowed 
to  play  but  little  part  in  the  government  of  his  own 
country.  This  was  followed  by  the  suggestion  that  if  he 
would  but  let  friends  in  other  directions  help  him,  he 
might  wield  far  greater  power  and  adopt  a  political 
course  unfettered  by  English  control. 

Among  these   people  was  the  Countess   S ,  for 

something  like  half  a  century  one  of  the  most  important 
personages  in  Cairo  society.  A  Russian  by  birth,  married 
to  an  Italian,  she  was  a  clever,  intriguing  woman  who 


The  Princess  Nazli  109 

had  ingratiated  herself  in  the  good  graces  of  the  Khedivah, 
or  Vice  Reine,  and  so  obtained  free  access  to  the  Khedivial 
harem.  The  Countess  could  be  influenced  in  whatever 
direction  the  inducement  was  most  tangible,  and,  strange 
to  say,  though  a  subject  of  the  Tsar  by  birth,  she  acquired 
strong  German  sympathies.  She  became  the  stoutest 
supporter  of  the  German  Emperor's  policy  in  the  East. 
Whether  in  the  long  run  the  Countess  would  have 
been  allowed  to  continue  her  German  intrigues  remains  a 
question,  but  she  discovered  that  certain  who  were 
necessary  to  her  success  would  not  allow  themselves  to 
be  deluded  by  her  sophistry  or  tempted  by  her  promises. 
Foremost  among  her  declared  enemies  was  a  cousin  of 
the  Khedive,  Princess  Nazli,  a  remarkable  woman,  still 
charming,  though  long  past  middle  age,  who  had  been 
one  of  the  first  champions  of  female  emancipation  in 
Turkey.  In  Egypt  she  partly  succeeded  in  breaking 
down  the  barriers.  Except  for  the  fact  that  she  wore  a 
yashmak  and  a  feridgi  when  she  went  out,  the  Princess 
adopted  entirely  the  life  of  a  European  lady  of  rank, 
even  to  the  length  of  receiving  masculine  visitors  in  her 
palace,  without  a  veil  hiding  her  features.  She  was 
devoted  to  England  and  everything  Enghsh,  and  exceed- 
ingly fond  of  both  Lord  and  Lady  Cromer,  who  were 
frequent  guests  at  her  ancient  Moorish  palace  in  the  old 
quarters  of  Cairo.  The  Princess  used  to  keep  them  very 
well  posted  as  to  all  the  different  intrigues  that  were 
continually  going  on  amidst  the  surroundings  of  the  weak 
and  kind-hearted  Khedive. 


no         The  Near  East  from  Within 

She  possessed  a  certain  influence  over  her  cousin,  the 
Khedive,  who,  though  secretly  afraid  of  her,  yet  recog- 
nised her  great  and  unmistakable  qualities.  Whether 
that  influence  would  have  been  durable  is  a  problem 
which  remains  unsolved,  because  Tewfik  Pasha  died  quite 
suddenly  and  unexpectedly,  leaving  his  throne  to  a  young 
boy.  This  lad  had  been  bred  in  the  atmosphere  of  his 
mother's  harem,  under  the  control  of  his  mother's 
friends ;  he  was  strongly  independent  by  nature,  but  as 
limited  in  insight  as  he  was  in  experience. 

When  Abbas  Hilmi  became  Khedive  he  at  once  pro- 
claimed himself  the  protector  of  the  independent  rights 
of  Egypt,  and  made  no  secret  of  his  dislike  of  everything 
English.  From  the  very  outset  he  showed  slavish  defer- 
ence toward  the  Sultan.  He  flattered  Abdul  Hamid  and 
succeeded  in  ingratiating  himself  in  his  good  graces.  This 
was  no  difficult  matter,  as  the  astute  Abdul  Hamid  saw 
at  once  the  use  which  he  could  make  of  the  headstrong 
youth  who,  from  the  very  first  instant  that  he  had 
succeeded  his  father,  applied  himself  to  defy  England. 
Unfortunately,  in  order  to  do  that  with  a  chance  of 
success  it  would  have  required  a  stronger  man  than 
Abbas  Hilmi,  who  in  the  end  had  his  pride  humbled,  first 
by  Lord  Cromer,  then  by  Sir  Eldon  Gorst,  and  lastly  by 
the  next  Agent,  Lord  Kitchener.  From  the  moment 
of  Lord  Kitchener's  appointment  the  prestige  of  Abbas 
Hilmi  began  to  decrease  almost  hourly,  until  at  last  he 
came  to  be  considered  even  by  his  own  subjects  as  an 
automaton. 


r  ^ 

o  =■ 

"  ^ 

5  3 


I   > 

II. 


The  Khedive  and  Lord  Kitchener     m 

This  state  of  affairs  was  admittedly  prejudicial  to 
German  interests,  but  it  would  not  be  faithful  to  history 
to  suppress  the  facts  simply  because  they  were  uncon- 
genial to  my  friends  at  Wilhelmstrasse.  The  realisation 
of  the  struggling  forces  in  Egypt  caused  a  more  per- 
sistent effort  to  be  put  forth  to  strengthen  German 
influence.  When,  some  few  years  after  Abbas  Hilmi 
came  to  the  throne,  Baron  von  Bieberstein  was  appointed 
to  Constantinople,  he  was  enjoined  to  establish  intimate 
relations  with  the  Khedive.  Abdul  Hamid,  after  his 
deposition,  was  also  induced  to  take  Abbas  under  his  pro- 
tection. When  Abdul  Hamid  was  allowed  to  return  to 
Constantinople,  he  aided  Abbas  Hilmi  to  a  considerable 
extent  out  of  private  means  which  Abdul  had  given  into 
the  care  of  William  II.  But  for  that  the  extravagant 
Khedive  would  often  have  found  himself  financially  em- 
barrassed, because  Lord  Kitchener  was  inflexible  in  his 
refusal  whenever  he  was  appealed  to  for  an  increase  to 
the  civil  list. 

Abbas  Hilmi  could  not  fail  to  perceive  the  difference 
in  the  treatment  accorded  to  him  by  England  on  the 
one  hand  and  by  Turkey  on  the  other.  He,  too,  had  it 
continually  impressed  upon  him  that  Germany  w^as  a 
sympathising  friend,  and  that  the  Emperor  William's 
kindliness  had  much  to  do  with  Abdul's  generosity.  By 
gentle  steps  the  Khedive  was  led  along  the  path  of  dis- 
content until,  at  last,  he  was  persuaded  that  he  was 
justified  in  giving  over  to  Wilhelmstrasse  all  the  plans  for 
the  defence  of  the  Suez  Canal,  which,  unknown  to  Lord 


112         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Kitchener,  he  had  appropriated  to  himself  and  brought 
over  to  Constantinople  for  safety. 

Once  this  diplomatic  feat  was  accomphshed,  it  became 
possible  for  Berlin  to  move  in  the  direction  of  extending 
her  influence  among  the  followers  of  Islam. 

When  the  present  war  with  Russia  and  with  her  aUies 
broke  out,  I  expected  as  a  matter  of  course  that  Turkey 
would  hasten  to  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  Germany,  and 
that  the  Egyptian  question  would  be  raised  anew  under 
conditions  which  would  make  it  very  hard  for  England 
to  solve.  Thanks  to  the  care  with  which  Germany  has 
given  to  the  problem  of  the  Suez  Canal,  it  has  been 
observed  from  all  sides  by  innumerable  German  agents, 
and  there  are  accomplices  both  at  Suez  and  at  Port  Said 
ready  at  any  moment  to  throw  off  the  cloak. 

In  compliance  with  the  wishes  of  the  German  Emperor, 
the  secret  efforts  of  German  diplomacy  and  of  the  states- 
men at  Berlin  have  been  directed  toward  one  supreme 
aim — the  wresting  from  England  the  possession  of  Egypt 
as  the  one  controlling  power  over  the  Suez  Canal.  In 
Wilhelmstrasse  they  were  confident  that  once  the  canal 
.were  destroyed — and  I  have  good  reasons  to  fear  that 
should  the  question  of  its  occupation  become  doubtful 
its  total  destruction  has  long  ago  been  decided  upon — 
England  would  find  herself  so  entirely  handicapped  in  her 
trade  and  her  commerce  that  it  would  become  relatively 
easy  to  annihilate  her  altogether,  or  at  least  to  render  her 
incapable  either  of  resistance  or  of  expansion  for  a  long 
time  to  come. 


A  Welter  of  Intrigue  113 

The  one  difficulty  which  this  plan  presented  was  that 
of  persuading  Abbas  Ilihni  to  accept  it.  The  young 
Khedive  was  quite  willing  to  do  his  best  to  reduce  the 
power  of  England,  but  he  did  not  intend  in  the  least  that 
his  country  should  pass  into  the  hands  of  another  great 
Power,  or  of  abdicating  one  iota  of  the  independence  he 
thought  he  could  secure.  He  could  not  be  brought  to 
an  entire  trust  in  the  good  faith  of  the  Emperor  William. 
He  did  not  trust  the  Sultan  Mehmed  Rechad  either, 
because  he  knew  that  he  was  but  a  tool  in  the  hands  of 
Enver  Pasha,  and  that  Enver  Pasha  would  have  given 
much  to  be  elected  Khedive  of  Egypt. 

Out  of  this  welter  of  intrigue  it  was  forced  upon  me 
that  the  young  Khedive,  who  had  alienated  himself  from 
his  real  friends  and  played  with  those  who  professed  good- 
will for  the  sake  of  making  a  tool  of  him,  was  drawing 
to  the  conclusion  that  the  day  was  approaching  when  he 
would  fall  between  stools,  as  the  English  expression  has 
it.  The  fact  was  that  the  removal  of  the  young  Khedive 
was  felt  to  have  become  a  necessity,  even  by  those  who 
were  still  making  use  of  him.  The  German  Emperor  had 
grasped  the  untrustworthy  character  of  his  tool,  and  was 
perfectly  aware  that,  after  having  played  the  English  and 
Lord  Kitchener  false.  Abbas  Hilmi  would  never  hold 
faith  with  him  or  keep  the  engagements  into  which  he 
had  entered  simply  in  order  to  obtain  money.  The  Sultan 
Rechad  was  worried  by  him  and,  besides,  had  been  warned 
against  him ;  Abdul  Hamid  was  tired  of  the  perpetual 
demands  for  money  with  which  he  was  bothered ;  and 


114         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Enver  Pasha  considered  him  as  the  great  obstacle  between 
him  and  his  conquest  of  the  province  which  he  coveted. 

My  own  feehng  on  the  matter  of  the  Suez  Canal  is 
that  its  possession  would  not  benefit  Germany  in  the 
least,  and  that  those  in  highest  places  in  Berlin  are  blinded 
by  feelings  of  mere  covetousness  and  rivalry.  On  the 
contrary,  I  am  satisfied  it  would  be  a  bad  day  for  the 
German  Emperor  if  Fate  gave  the  canal  into  his  posses- 
sion. It  would  add  nothing  to  our  prosperity  or  to  our 
welfare.  First,  it  would  become  the  source  of  perpetual 
strifes  and  annoyances,  as  England  would  never  resign 
herself  to  its  loss;  then  France  also  would  find  in  the 
appropriation  of  the  great  thoroughfare  of  the  world  by 
Germany  a  pretext  for  renewed  attacks  against  her; 
Russia  and  Japan,  who  are  interested  in  the  commercial 
side  of  the  question,  would  undoubtedly  insist  on  the 
neutralisation  of  the  canal.  These  seem  to  me  to  be  some 
of  the  logical  outcomes.  The  end  of  the  matter  might 
be  the  blowing  up  of  the  canal  by  Turkey,  who  would 
thus  solve  the  question  of  its  possession.  No  !  Germany 
has  muddled  things  in  this  direction,  and,  in  my  opinion, 
will  have  to  pay  bitterly  for  her  overreaching  diplomacy. 


CHAPTER   X 

EMPEROR   WILLIAM    II.    AND    THE    TSAR 

'T^HE  reference  in  the  previous  chapter  to  the  designs 
•'-  nourished  in  Berhn  for  securing  possession  of  the  Suez 
Canal  leads  me  to  recall  the  astonishment  which  gripped 
the  few  statesmen  and  diplomatic  officials  who  learned  of 
the  secret  suggestions  made  by  William  II.  to  Nicholas  II. 
Naturally,  such  matters  are  not  accessible  to  all  who  may 
wish  to  know,  but  few  state  secrets  can  be  entirely  hidden 
from  the  confidential  servants  of  the  Empire.  This  was 
a  personal  correspondence,  but  nevertheless  its  general 
piu-port  was  known  to  one  or  two  of  the  Emperor 
William's  most  trusted  advisers,  who  used  their  best  en- 
deavours to  dissuade  their  headstrong  ruler.  But  he  was 
superbly  certain  that  no  man  was  adamant  to  the  appeal 
of  ambition,  that  no  monarch  would  allow  ethical  con- 
siderations to  stand  in  the  way  of  territorial  expansion 
and  greater  power.  W^hen  the  Emperor  Nicholas  paid 
his  famous  visit  to  Berlin  on  the  occasion  of  the  marriage 
of  the  Kaiser's  only  daughter  to  the  present  Duke  of 
Brunswick,  he  was  received  there  with  an  extraordinary 
courtesy  and  enthusiasm,  and  the  Berlin  Court  tried  to 
persuade  him  that  his  presence  on  such  a  momentous 

"5 


ii6         The  Near  East  from  Within 

occasion  was  far  more  appreciated  than  that  of  King 
George  and  his  gracious  consort. 

When  taking  leave  of  his  illustrious  guest  at  the  rail- 
way station,  the  Emperor  William  shook  his  hand  with 
such  apparent  sincerity  that  the  Tsar  could  really  be 
excused  if  he  imagined  that  from  that  day  the  relations 
between  the  houses  of  HohenzoUern  and  Romanoff  would 
resume  their  former  intimate  friendliness. 

When,  however,  the  last  guests  had  taken  their 
departure,  and  the  bride  herself  had  left  for  her  new 
home,  the  Kaiser  began  once  more  to  turn  his  attention 
to  foreign  politics. 

Though  he  had  shown  himself  excessively  attentive  to 
the  King  and  Queen  of  England,  he  had  tried  to  avoid 
any  serious  conversation  with  George  V.,  whose  common 
sense  and  straightforwardness  had  never  appealed  to  his 
cousin  of  Prussia.  At  that  moment  the  Balkan  War,  or 
rather  the  Balkan  crisis,  had  reached  its  culminating  point. 
Austria,  who,  by  the  way,  had  carefully  abstained  from 
sending  any  official  representative  to  the  wedding  festivi- 
ties in  Berlin,  was  pressing  her  German  ally  to  interfere 
in  favour  of  her  schemes  affecting  Servia  and  Bulgaria. 
In  Roumania  the  King,  faithful  to  the  wise  line  of 
expectant  politics  he  had  always  followed  with  such 
success,  was  waiting  for  the  signal  from  Berlin  to  come 
out  either  in  the  character  of  a  belligerent  or  of  a  mediator, 
whilst,  in  Bulgaria,  Ferdinand  was  making  no  secret  of 
his  intention  to  obtain  for  himself  all  the  advantages  of  a 
situation  he  had  done  his  best  to  muddle. 


Tempting  the  Tsar  117 

This,  then,  was  the  situation  when  the  episode  of  the 
Imperial  correspondence  had  its  beginnings.  It  was  not 
a  propitious  time  for  Wilham  II.  to  think  of  war;  as  yet 
he  was  unprepared.  On  the  other  hand,  the  presence  in 
Berhn  of  his  British  cousins  had  only  aggravated  the  feel- 
ings of  deep  dislike  which  he  entertained  toward  them, 
and  something  in  the  quiet  dignity  of  King  George,  and 
the  sense  of  security  which  he  seemed  to  carry  about  with 
him,  had  exasperated  the  Emperor.  Nicholas  II.  is 
habitually  nervous  at  Court  functions,  and  the  Emperor 
William  deceived  himself  that  so  restless  a  temperament 
would  also  be  unstable  in  character.  Accordingly, 
William  II.  felt  there  would  be  little  opposition  to  pro- 
posals which  he  had  in  mind — a  scheme  the  success  of 
which  would  mean  the  humbling  of  England. 

When  the  Tsar  returned  to  Tsarskoye  Selo,  he 
expressed  himself  highly  pleased  with  his  visit  to  Berlin. 
He  even  told  Count  Pourtales,  at  that  time  German 
Ambassador  at  the  Russian  Court,  that  he  had  enjoyed 
himself  far  more  than  he  had  expected,  and  that  he 
would  always  think  with  gratitude  of  the  kindness  he 
had  experienced  during  his  trip,  not  only  from  the 
Emperor  Wilham,  but  also  from  the  people  of  Berlin. 
Count  Pourtales  transmitted  to  the  Kaiser  the  words  of 
his  Imperial  cousin,  and  Wilham  II.  then  decided  to  act. 

It  was  in  July  or  August  of  the  same  year — 1913,  as 
the  reader  will  remember — that  a  special  messenger 
brought  to  Peterhof ,  where  the  Russian  Imperial  family 
was  spending  its  summer  holiday,  an  holograph  letter  from 


ii8         The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  German  sovereign  addressed  to  the  Tsar.  It  was 
written  in  the  most  friendly  tone,  and  pointed  out  that 
if  the  peace  of  the  world  were  to  be  maintained  it  was 
absolutely  necessary  to  put  an  end  to  the  constantly 
recurring  agitation  in  the  Balkans  and  to  curb  the 
ambition  of  all  the  small  states  of  the  peninsula,  ambition 
which,  in  the  case  of  Servia  and  Bulgaria,  was  threatening 
to  assume  most  dangerous  proportions.  This  letter  also 
charged  England  with  intrigue.  That  country,  it  said, 
was  only  waiting  for  the  opportunity  to  annex  Egypt, 
and  was  doing  her  best  to  entangle  the  Sultan  in  a  web 
of  difficulties,  during  which  she  would  be  able  to  wrest 
from  him  the  nominal  suzerainty  exercised  by  the  latter 
over  that  country.  And,  referring  as  if  incidentally  to 
the  close  friendship  which  imited  the  Commander  of  the 
Faithful  and  himself,  the  German  Emperor  went  on  to 
suggest  a  common  action  having  for  its  object  the  check- 
ing of  English  ambition,  and  at  the  same  time  achieving 
the  secretly  long-cherished  desires  of  Russia  to  obtain 
possession  of  the  Straits  of  the  Bosphorus  and  the 
Dardanelles  in  exchange  for  her  passive  acquiescence  in 
a  combined  action  of  the  German  and  Turkish  fleets 
against  Egypt.  The  purport  of  this  memorable  letter 
was  : 

Russia  will  not  have  accomplished  the  task  she  has 
been  entrusted  with  by  Providence  until  she  has  become 
absolute  mistress  of  the  Black  Sea.  So  long  as  England 
has  a  word  to  say  in  the  question,  she  will  oppose  that 
legitimate  ambition  by  all  means  in  her  power  or  at  her 


Painting  the  Picture  119 

discretion.  England,  who  has  always  posed  as  the  friend 
of  Turkey,  will  support  her  only  so  long  as  she  maintains 
an  attitude  of  hostility  toward  Russia.  Otherwise, 
England,  with  amazing  alacrity,  will  leave  her  to  the 
tender  mercies  of  her  enemies.  England  is  supporting 
King  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria,  and  encouraging  him  in  his 
dreams  of  becoming  one  day  Eastern  Emperor,  with 
Byzantium  as  his  capital.  The  moment  this  comes  to 
pass,  Russia's  day  is  over.  She  will  remain  a  second-rate 
Power,  strangled  by  its  own  immensity,  and  deprived  of 
her  vital  southern  outlet  on  the  sea.  She  will  find  herself 
at  the  mercy  of  every  adventurer  and  exposed  to  the 
greatest  dangers  from  her  neighbours.  Now,  should 
Russia  see  her  own  interests  and  consent  to  enter  into  an 
alliance  with  the  Sultan,  co-operating  wdth  him  and  with 
Germany  in  an  action  tending  to  neutralise  the  Suez 
Canal,  and  to  hand  it  over  to  a  European  Commission, 
who  would  be  entrusted  with  the  task  of  preventing  it 
from  ever  becoming  a  military  base  for  any  other  than 
the  Turkish  army,  she  might  obtain  in  exchange  the 
neutralisation  of  the  Straits  for  all  Powers  w^ith  the 
exception  of  herself. 

When  these  desirable  consummations  were  attained, 
continued  the  astonishing  document,  Constantinople 
would  remain  the  residence  of  the  Sultan,  but  be  placed 
also  under  European  control,  whilst  the  capital  of  Turkey 
would  be  transferred  to  Brusa,  on  the  Asiatic  side  of 
the  Dardanelles.  Thus  Russia  would  become  the  sole 
mistress  of  the  Black  Sea,  and  find  herself  able  to  control 


120 


The  Near  East  from  Within 


entirely  the  policy  of  the  Balkan  States.  She  might  in 
time  annex  Bulgaria,  and  she  would  hold  Servia  in  check. 
At  the  same  time,  England  being  put  out  of  the  running, 
the  establishment  of  a  permanent  peace  in  the  Balkan 
Peninsula,  which  was  next  to  impossible  as  things  stood, 
would  be  in  a  fair  way  to  become  accomplished. 

Before  the  Emperor  William  II.  had  ventured  to 
propose  that  amazing  scheme  to  the  Tsar,  he  had  carefully 
arranged  with  the  Sultan  that  the  Suez  Canal,  while 
placed  under  a  so-called  European  Commission,  would  in 
reahty  be  put  under  German  management.  So  definite, 
indeed,  was  the  agreement  that  plans  for  the  re-fortifi- 
cation of  the  canal  were  already  prepared  by  German 
officers,  and  had  been  submitted  to  the  Sultan  for  his 
confirmation.  In  this  carefully  planned  conspiracy  every- 
thing had  been  foreseen ;  only  one  thing  was  needed — 
and  that  depended  upon  the  honesty  and  the  loyalty  of 
Nicholas  II. 

The  Russian  sovereign  did  not  reply  at  once  to  this 
remarkable  message.  When  he  did  so,  after  some  days 
had  passed,  his  answer  was  a  proof  of  the  entire  straight- 
forwardness of  his  character.  He  thanked  his  Imperial 
cousin  for  his  communication,  and  then  proceeded  to 
explain  that  he  was  bound  by  an  agreement  which  had 
for  its  aim  the  furtherance  of  good  relationship  between 
the  two  countries  over  which  he  and  King  George 
were  ruling.  Nicholas  II.  continued  that  he  felt  con- 
vinced the  British  Government  would  never  break  the 
engagements  it  had  entered  upon,  and  that  certainly  he 


What  Nicholas  II.  Said  121 

could  not  on  his  side  fail  to  keep  faith.  He  added  that, 
though  Russia  might  wish  for  the  possession  of  the  Straits, 
yet  she  would  never  desire  to  get  them  under  her  control 
at  the  price  of  any  action  that  might  be  construed  as 
treasonable.  Besides,  Russia  wanted  peace,  and  if  she 
lent  herself  to  such  a  scheme  as  that  outlined,  it  was  going 
to  open  the  door  to  all  kinds  of  complications,  and 
assuredly  lead  to  war.  As  to  the  value  of  the  suggestions 
in  regard  to  the  benefit  it  was  thought  would  accrue,  he 
personally  failed  to  see  in  what  aspect  the  general  political 
situation  of  Europe  would  change  by  England  being 
driven  out  of  Egypt.  Turkey  was  not  strong  enough  to 
govern  that  country  alone,  and  it  could  hardly  be  handed 
over  to  any  other  Power  without  leading  to  all  sorts  of 
quarrels  and  strife.  The  danger  of  war,  therefore,  instead 
of  being  diminished,  would  be  increased. 

It  would  be  very  much  better,  in  his  opinion,  to 
insist  collectively  on  Turkey,  as  well  as  on  Servia  and 
Bulgaria,  laying  down  arms  and  submitting  their  differ- 
ences to  the  arbitration  of  a  conference.  He  expressed 
the  certain  hope  that  the  various  ambassadors  in  London 
would  be  equal,  even,  to  that  difficult  task,  and  would 
carry  it  through  to  a  happy  end.  The  Tsar  concluded 
his  reply  with  the  remark  that  the  programme  outlined 
by  Wilham  II.  was  undignified  for  any  Christian  Power 
to  embark  upon,  and  that  he  would  consider  himself 
dishonoured  by  lending  his  hand  to  such  an  enterprise. 

When  William  II.  received  this  reply  his  feelings  can 
be  imagined.     I  am  aware  that  it  caused  an  immediate 


122         The  Near  East  from  Within 

change  of  course,  for  after  a  few  months  I  was  the  bearer 
of  a  letter  to  the  late  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand.  This 
communication  was  quite  simple  on  the  surface,  merely- 
suggesting  a  friendly  visit  to  Ferdinand  in  the  near  future. 
From  the  Archduke  and  the  Duchess  of  Hohenberg  I 
brought  back  a  cordial  invitation,  and  in  due  time — 
w^hich,  however,  was  not  until  May,  1914 — the  German 
Emperor  paid  a  visit  to  the  heir  to  the  throne  of  Austria- 
Hungary  at  the  Castle  of  Konopischt  in  Bohemia. 


CHAPTER   XI 

KING   CAROL   OF    ROUMANIA. 

WILLIAM  II.  always  felt  great  respect  for  King 
Carol  of  Roumania,  who  had  been  a  close  friend 
of  the   Emperor  Frederick,   the  father  of  the   German 
Emperor.     King  Carol  had  the  reputation  of  being  one 
of  the  wisest  monarchs  in  Europe.     During  the  many 
years  in  which   he  occupied  the  Roumanian  throne   he 
proved  a  model  sovereign  and  contrived  to  steer  safely 
among  very  troubled  waters,  and  not  only  to  remain  in 
possession    of    his    throne,    but    also   to    consoHdate    his 
dynasty.     Alone  among  the  Balkan  sovereigns,  he  kept 
aloof  from  the  various  intrigues  which  had  troubled  the 
peninsula.    Since  the  war  of  1877  against  Turkey  he  had 
not  drawn  his  sword,  and  succeeded  to  a  certain  degree 
in  imposing  peace  upon  his  neighbours  when  they  had 
proved  troublesome  and  tried  to  persuade  him  to  mix 
himself   up   in   their  quarrels.     In    1913    it   was   mainly 
through  his  exertions  and  owing  to  his  firm  attitude  in 
regard  to   Bulgaria  that   King   Ferdinand  consented  to 
listen  to  reason,  and  to  accept  the  rather  hard  conditions 
of  the  Treaty  of  Bucharest.     When  Russia  was  on  the 
point  of  interfering  in  that  question,  it  was  also  the  King 

123 


124         The  Near  East  from  Within 

of  Roumania  who  warned  her  of  the  serious  consequences 
of  such  a  step.  Had  he  only  been  Hstened  to,  it  is  prob- 
able that  the  war  which  broke  out  in  July,  1914,  might 
have  been  avoided,  or  at  least  postponed  for  some  time. 
Among  modern  rulers  and  statesmen  the  figure  of  Carol  I. 
stands  out  as  one  of  the  most  remarkable.  He  was  a  man 
of  principles,  straightforward,  honest,  true,  sincere  in 
all  he  said  and  did.  When  he  accepted  the  throne  of 
Roumania  he  was  still  a  young  man,  and  at  that  time  no 
one  beheved  his  tenure  would  be  long.  Before  he  had 
decided  to  risk  the  adventure  he  consulted  Prince  von 
Bismarck,  asking  him  what  he  ought  to  do.  Bismarck 
replied  that  he  might  try  it,  as  it  would  always  constitute 
for  him  "a  pleasant  remembrance."  The  remark  was 
not  encouraging,  and  many  men  more  experienced  than 
this  younger  scion  of  the  House  of  Hohenzollern  might 
have  hesitated  before  the  risk  of  such  an  enterprise.  Not 
so  King  Carol.  He  arrived  at  Bucharest  simply  as  Prince 
Carol  of  Roumania,  a  vassal  and  dependant  of  the  Sultan, 
whose  suzerainty  over  the  turbulent  little  principality  was 
not  then  disputed. 

This  event  took  place  in  1866,  just  before  the 
victorious  campaign  which  Prussia  had  conducted  with 
such  skill  against  the  forces  of  Austria.  Sadowa  was 
fought  between  the  day  of  the  election  of  Prince  Charles 
of  Hohenzollern  and  that  of  the  acknowledgment  of  his 
position  as  ruler  of  Roumania  by  the  great  European 
Powers.  He  arrived  in  his  new  country  with  more  deter- 
mination than  ambition.     Not  easily  would  he  be  driven 


King  Carol  and  Finance  125 

out.  He  possessed  tact  to  an  even  greater  extent  than 
courage ;  he  was  shrewd  more  than  agile  of  intellect,  and 
manifested  abundant  strength  of  will.  He  was  always 
particularly  interested  in  the  progress  of  science,  art, 
and  literature,  and  made  a  study  of  social  questions. 
Undoubtedly  he  did  nuich  to  improve  and  to  develop  the 
resources  of  his  country  of  adoption. 

When  he  arrived  in  Roumania  he  at  once  appreciated 
its  vast  possibilities.  He  became  the  first  business  man 
of  his  new  Fatherland,  and  scarcely  any  commercial  enter- 
prise was  started  in  Roumania  without  his  having  a  finger 
in  the  financial  pie.  He  speculated,  he  built  railways, 
factories ;  he  became  a  shareholder  in  industrial  concerns 
in  his  adopted  country  and  elsewhere;  he  encouraged 
foreign  capital  to  establish  itself  in  Bucharest,  and  he 
developed  the  riches  and  the  economical  hfe  of  Roumania 
to  an  extent  w^hich  astonished  some  of  the  strongest  and 
cutest  financial  heads  in  Europe.  When  he  died  he  left 
something  like  fifty  millions,  according  to  official  records, 
and  in  reality  a  great  deal  more. 

The  financial  genius  of  King  Carol  was  provided  with 
an  outlet  for  the  riches  he  accumulated  in  his  epicurean 
love  of  the  beautiful.  He  spent  fortunes  to  gratify  his 
taste  for  the  exquisite,  and  grew  to  look  with  more  than 
affection  on  his  growing  wealth.  This  fact  explains, 
perhaps,  why  the  policy  of  Roumania  remained  so  con- 
stantly a  pacific  one.  The  King,  who  thought  more  of 
the  fate  of  his  own  personal  fortune,  dreaded  nothing 
more  than  to  see  it  compromised.     He  was  well  aware 


126         The  Near  East  from  Within 

that  even  a  successful  war,  if  it  did  not  stop  altogether, 
would  at  least  considerably  delay  the  commercial  expan- 
sion of  the  kingdom  over  which  he  ruled  with  such  tact 
and  ability.  He  did  not  care  for  military  laurels,  being 
wise  enough  to  recognise  their  utter  emptiness.  If  he 
had  been  offered  the  possession  of  Constantinople  with 
the  title  of  Emperor,  it  is  probable  that  he  would  have 
declined  the  honour,  but  at  the  same  time  he  would  have 
taken  active  steps  to  prevent  anyone  else  than  the  Sultan 
being  so  denominated.  When  his  neighbour  at  Sofia 
developed  the  sudden  desire  to  wrest  St.  Sophia  from 
the  Sultan,  Carol  at  once  not  only  refused  Ferdinand  his 
co-operation  and  support  in  that  enterprise,  but  declared 
that  he  would  oppose  it  by  all  means  in  his  power.  He 
foresaw  that  the  equilibrium  of  the  Balkan  Peninsula 
would  be  disturbed  by  the  expansion  of  any  of  the  small 
nationalities,  and  wisely  and  astutely  meant  to  keep  the 
balance  of  power  in  his  own  hands  so  long  as  he  lived. 

He  was  honest  in  his  way,  if  honesty  consists  in  keep- 
ing one's  word  and  of  never  by  any  means  doing  a  wrong 
which  was  liable  to  be  found  out.  But  he  was  also  a 
cynical,  weary,  disillusioned  man,  who  hastened  to  laugh 
at  everything,  not  the  least  cause  of  amusement  being 
the  way  in  which  the  world  took  him  at  his  own  valuation 
and  gave  him  its  confidence. 

With  a  character  of  that  kind,  it  was  pretty  certain 
that  an  adventure,  be  it  a  political  or  a  warlike  one,  was 
not  to  be  feared ;  and,  whilst  King  Carol  of  Roumania 
lived,  most  of  the  statesmen  who  had  the  responsibilities 


Carol  I.  as  Counsellor  127 

of  the  affairs  of  Europe  in  general  could  rely  on  his  help- 
ing them  to  unravel  the  knot  of  many  difficulties.  Even 
William  II.  more  than  once  had  recourse  to  him  in  one 
or  other  of  the  scrapes  which  he  periodically  got  into 
during  the  early  days  of  his  reign.  Carol  I.  listened  to 
him  with  an  unvarying  attention,  and  generally  succeeded 
in  giving  him  thoroughly  sound  advice,  which  enabled 
WilHam  II.  to  minimise  and  counteract  evil  effects  that 
might  easily  have  resulted  from  his  imprudences.  The 
King  was  essentially  of  a  sympathising  nature,  though  he 
could  hardly  have  been  termed  a  sympathetic  man.  There 
was  far  too  much  coldness  in  his  manners,  and  he  was 
excessively  caustic.  His  very  politeness  appeared  some- 
times to  be  more  studied  than  real,  though  at  the  same 
time  it  was  thoroughly  genuine,  proceeding  from  the 
habits  and  customs  in  which  he  had  been  reared.  He  had 
learned  the  great  art  not  to  seem  bored  at  anything  that 
others  might  have  to  tell  him,  and  this  had  won  him  much 
popularity  with  the  other  crowned  heads  of  Europe,  as 
well  as  among  his  own  subjects. 

When  at  his  castle  of  Sinaia  he  allowed  any  peasant 
or  labourer  to  approach  him  and  to  talk  to  him  about 
their  crops  or  vines.  He  was  equally  at  ease  in  the 
part  of  a  gentleman  farmer  as  in  that  of  a  gravely 
attentive  monarch  granting  an  audience  to  this  or  that 
minister  eager  to  explain  to  him  difficult  political  ques- 
tions interesting  to  him  as  well  as  to  others.  He  was 
essentially  an  adaptive  man,  content  everywhere  and  in 
every  position  in  which  he  found  himself,  fully  alive  to 


128         The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  value  of  the  good  things  of  this  earth.  He  did  not  fear 
death,  being  satisfied  that  he  was  entitled  to  a  seat  of 
honour  in  the  next  world.  This  quaint  persuasion  contri- 
buted a  great  deal  to  the  serenity  with  which  he  contem- 
plated the  final  dissolution. 

From  the  very  first  day  of  his  arrival  at  Bucharest, 
King  Carol  meant  to  obtain  the  royal  crown  of  Roumania. 
It  is  likely  that  he  would  not  have  joined  Russia  in  1877, 
when  she  attacked  Turkey  for  the  apparent  reason  of 
delivering  Bulgaria  from  its  yoke,  had  he  not  foreseen 
that  the  transformation  of  Roumania  into  a  kingdom 
would  be  the  inevitable  reward  that  his  conduct  would 
entitle  him  to  claim.  He  had,  indeed,  prepared  himself 
for  that  contingency,  and  given  careful  attention  to  the 
training  of  his  troops,  whose  help  had  proved  invaluable 
to  the  Tsar.  Like  a  true  Hohenzollern,  he  had  directed 
his  efforts  toward  the  establishment  of  Roumania  as  the 
dominant  military  power  of  the  Balkan  peninsula,  and  he 
succeeded. 

The  prize,  however,  did  not  come  quite  so  quickly  as 
he  had  expected  owing  to  various  circumstances,  among 
which  may  be  counted  the  stubborn  opposition  of  Prince 
von  Bismarck.  He  was  not  proclaimed  king  until  four 
years  after  the  war  of  1877,  and  then  only  after  he  had 
spent  considerable  sums  out  of  his  private  purse  for  the 
purpose  of  obtaining  the  favourable  votes.  It  had  not 
been  so  easy  as  Carol  I.  had  expected  to  convert  Roumania 
into  a  monarchy.  Bismarck  hated  the  idea ;  he  did  not 
like  Carol,  perhaps  because  he  knew  that  King  Carol  was 


A  Caustic  Letter  129 

one  of  the  few  men  in  the  world  who  did  not  fear  him. 
This  displeased  Bismarck  thoroughly.  He  could  never 
bring  himself  to  be  cordial  to  the  new  monarch  of 
Roumania.  Thus  he  committed  one  of  his  gravest  errors, 
because  Carol  I.,  appreciating  the  worth  of  the  foe  with 
whom  he  had  to  deal,  hastened,  after  William  II.  ascended 
the  throne,  to  sympathise  with  the  young  Emperor's 
revolts  against  the  authority  of  the  great  minister  who 
for  so  long  had  been  solely  responsible  for  the  policy  of 
Prussia.  King  Carol,  indeed,  encouraged  William  in  his 
desire  to  get  rid  of  Bismarck.  It  is  not  generally  known 
that,  before  dismissing  Prince  Bismarck,  the  young 
Emperor  wrote  to  the  King  of  Roumania  asking  him 
what  he  ought  to  do,  complaining  at  the  same  time  of 
the  overbearing  temper  of  his  Chancellor,  Carol  I.,  as 
I  happened  to  learn,  replied  most  diplomatically  in  the 
following  terms  to  his  Imperial  nephew :  "I  cannot 
advise  you  in  the  matter  to  which  j^ou  refer ;  it  is  for 
you  only  to  decide ;  other  people  cannot  interfere,  but  if 
I  were  in  your  place  I  should  like  always  to  be  the  master 
in  my  own  house."  This  letter  sealed  the  fate  of  the 
great  man  who,  by  his  skill  and  intelligence,  had  founded 
the  German  Empire. 

This  circumstance  created  between  the  two  rulers  a 
very  powerful  secret  bond,  one  which  William,  later  on, 
would  have  given  much  to  have  Carol  forget.  He  had 
confided  in  Carol  at  this  important  crisis  of  his  Hfe  as 
a  sovereign,  on  one  of  those  impulses  to  which  he  was  so 
often  subject  and  which  he  invariably  regretted.     King 


130         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Carol,  however,  was  far  too  clever  and  far  too  cautious 
to  show  that  he  remembered  the  circumstance,  but  at 
the  same  time  he  contrived  that  William  II.  should 
never  forget  it.  Whenever  any  European  complication 
occurred,  he  interfered  in  it  by  entering  at  once  into  an 
amicable  correspondence  with  the  Emperor,  and  by 
making  him  feel  that,  since  he  had  once  asked  his  advice 
in  one  of  the  most  important  moments  in  his  existence, 
he  was  welcome  to  do  it  alwa5^s. 

This  attitude  was  a  beneficial  factor  in  the  peace 
of  Europe,  because  the  influence  of  the  King,  which 
William  II.  could  not  very  well  ignore,  was  always  an 
excellent  one,  and  his  tact  contributed  greatly  toward 
clearing  certain  international  difficulties  which  now  and 
then  arose  to  trouble  the  political  horizon  of  Europe.  The 
Roumanian  sovereign,  it  must  not  be  forgotten,  was  also 
a  Hohenzollern,  and  had  cherished  the  clannish  feehng 
of  that  house  in  regard  to  its  chief  and  to  its  own  race ; 
his  fatherland  was  Germany,  and  Roumania  remained  but 
an  incident  in  his  life.  Latterly,  however,  the  unneces- 
sarily aggressive  attitude  of  Germany  did  not  meet  with 
his  approval,  and  he  began  to  transfer  his  affections  to 
Russia.  He  had  done  his  best  to  get  his  relative  out  of 
the  multifarious  scrapes  in  which  he  had  found  himself 
so  often  involved.  Perhaps  he  had  worked  too  energetic- 
ally toward  that  result,  for  his  efforts  had  produced  a 
certain  impatience  in  the  mind  of  William  II.  An 
unfortunate  effect  of  this  reliance  on  King  Carol  was  that 
it  had  rather  impressed  WiUiam  II.  with  the  conviction 


Carol  I.  and  Russia  131 

that  he  had  always  at  hand  one  who  could  effectively 
repair  his  mistakes.  As  a  consequence  the  ruler  of 
Roumania  watched  with  considerable  anxiety  the  career 
of  his  enterprising  relative,  and  latterly  had  not  displayed 
the  same  readiness  to  put  things  right.  King  Carol  had 
become  alarmed  at  the  anti-English  feelings  developing  in 
the  breast  of  WiUiam  II.  The  political  and  diplomatic 
experience  of  Carol  I.  was  too  extensive  not  to  make  him 
realise  that  a  coalition  of  Russia,  France,  and  England 
against  Germany  might  have  disastrous  results  for  the 
Empire  of  the  HohenzoUerns,  and  he  did  not  care  for 
the  possibihty  of  the  Hohenzollern  dynasty  being  over- 
thrown. 

These  considerations  had  made  him  look  with 
uneasiness  and  apprehension  on  the  aggressive  policy  that 
Germany  had  entered  upon,  and  had,  practically,  also 
imposed  upon  her  ally,  Austria-Hungary.  King  Carol 
had  never  approved  of  the  annexation  of  Bosnia  and 
Herzegovina  to  the  realm  of  the  Habsburgs,  and  had 
warmly  admired  the  wise  conduct  of  Russia  in  regard  to 
that  question.  The  attitude  of  the  Petersburg  cabinet 
had  pleased  him  so  much  that,  as  hinted,  he  had  begun 
to  consider  seriously  the  possibility  of  a  rapprochement 
with  Russia.  He  found  a  ready  collaborator  in  the 
Russian  minister  at  his  Court,  a  young  diplomat  of 
unusual  ability,  M.  Schebeko,  who  had  at  once  grasped 
the  immense  consequences  of  inducing  the  Bucharest 
cabinet  to  look  with  favouring  eyes  upon  the  policy  and 
the  plans  of  the  triple  understanding  between  Russia, 


132         The  Near  East  from  Within 

France,  and  Britain.  In  his  enthusiasm  for  the  idea, 
however,  M.  Schebeko  sometimes  carried  his  zeal  too  far, 
and  this  led  to  certain  frictions  that  might  have  been 
avoided  had  Russia  proceeded  with  the  same  caution 
employed  by  King  Carol. 

When  the  Tsar  conferred  the  rank  of  a  field-marshal 
in  the  Russian  army  upon  the  Roumanian  sovereign,  it 
was  felt  that  a  great  step  forward  had  been  made.  Russian 
policy  in  the  Balkans,  and  indeed  everywhere  else,  had 
thereby  gained  an  important  auxiliary  in  the  person  of 
the  wise  and  generally  respected  monarch.  When,  thanks 
to  certain  feminine  interventions,  matters  had  so  far  pro- 
gressed that  the  possibility  of  an  alliance  between  the 
Romanoffs  and  the  Roumanian  dynasty  began  to  be 
mentioned,  the  different  European  cabinets  thought  it 
was  time  to  watch  with  more  than  usual  curiosity  every- 
thing that  was  going  on  at  Bucharest,  especially  as  King 
Carol,  though  know^n  to  be  in  more  than  indifferent 
health,  was  nevertheless  not  suspected  to  be  in  so  grave 
a  condition  as  subsequently  proved  to  be  the  case. 

At  that  particular  moment  the  King  of  Roumania 
was  enjoying  the  confidence  and  respect  of  continental 
sovereigns  as  well  as  of  their  responsible  advisers,  of  the 
Sultan  and  all  the  different  political  parties  in  Turkey, 
and  also  throughout  the  Balkans.  After  the  tragic  death 
of  King  George  of  Greece  it  was  to  his  experience  that 
finally  all  questions  pending  between  the  Balkanic  States 
were  referred,  and  the  idea  that  he  might  be  inclined  to 
accept  the  opinions  of  Russia,  and  to  approve  of  them, 


Count  Berchtold  Becomes  Alarmed   133 

could  not  fail  to  arouse  intense  emotion  as  well  as  a 
certain  degree  of  anxiety  everywhere. 

More  particularly  was  this  appreliension  felt  at  Vienna. 
Count  Berchtold  grew  so  alarmed  at  this  development 
that  he  ventured  to  ask  King  Carol  whether  his  friend- 
liness toward  Austria  had  undergone  a  change.  The  King 
replied  with  his  usual  caution  that  he  would  always  con- 
centrate his  efforts  in  maintaining  peace.  The  answer 
satisfied  no  one,  and  least  of  all  the  Emperor  William, 
to  whom  it  was  immediately  communicated. 

This  situation  saw  the  beginning  of  German  intrigue 
against  Roumania,  and  William  II.  found  an  unexpected 
ally  in  a  lady  who  stood  in  close  relationship  to  the 
Russian  Empress,  and  who,  having  the  opportunity  to 
see  the  Imperial  family  almost  daily,  was  induced  to  work 
upon  the  mind  of  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  Tsar  and  to 
persuade  her  that  she  would  do  better  to  remain  in  her 
own  country  than  to  marry  the  heir-presumptive  to  the 
Roumanian  throne.  Another  area  of  German  activity 
was  found  in  fostering  the  ambitions  of  King  Ferdinand 
of  Bulgaria. 

The  marriage  of  the  Duchess  of  Brunswick  took  place 
while  these  matters  were  developing,  and  created  in 
the  mind  of  William  II.  the  thought  of  appealing  to 
the  Emperor  of  Russia  and  to  allow  himself  to  be  induced 
to  look  with  indifferent  eyes  upon  the  wresting  of  Egypt 
and  the  Suez  Canal  from  Great  Britain.  The  details  are 
already  known  to  us. 

King   Carol — who   was  consulted — was  very  quickly 


134        The  Near  East  from  Within 

alive  to  the  utter  insanity  of  the  plan,  and  he  forthwith 
replied  to  his  Imperial  relative  not  to  think  any  more 
about  such  impossible  things.  In  the  spring  of  1914 
King  Carol  sent  his  nephew  and  heir  to  Petersburg, 
together  with  his  consort  and  their  eldest  son.  The  visit 
did  not  lead  to  the  result  which  had  been  hoped  for,  as 
the  young  Grand  Duchess  Olga  would  not  consent  to 
wed  into  the  Roumanian  royal  family.  The  Emperor 
William  congratulated  himself  that  he  had  obtained  a 
decided  success  in  that  quarter,  and  the  fact  that  he 
thought  so  reached  the  ears  of  King  Carol,  who  expressed 
his  displeasure  in  a  most  decided  manner. 

It  was  at  this  juncture  that  I  was  ordered  to  repair 
to  Bucharest  with  a  letter  from  my  sovereign  addressed 
to  the  King  of  Roumania,  which  gave  rise  to  a  curious 
conversation  which  I  shall  refer  to  in  a  later  chapter. 

My  visit  did  not  lead  to  much,  and  certainly  it  did  not 
change  anything  in  the  international  complications  which 
suddenly  seemed  to  spring  from  every  side.  All  the 
efforts  of  the  King  of  Roumania,  all  his  appeals  and 
advices  tendered  at  Vienna,  as  well  as  in  Petersburg,  came 
to  nothing,  and  did  not  even  delay  the  crisis.  When  the 
Emperor  and  Empress  of  Russia  had  paid  their  famous 
visit  to  Constanza,  in  the  beginning  of  June  of  last  year, 
it  was  believed  that  it  would  lead  to  an  ultimate  Russo- 
Roumanian  alliance,  directed,  if  not  against  Austria,  at 
least  against  the  ever-growing  ambition  of  King  Ferdin- 
and of  Bulgaria.  This  supposition  also  came  to  nothing. 
Carol  I.  did  not  desire  to  bind  himself  at  a  juncture  when 


M.  Sazonov  visits  King  Carol        135 

he  instinctively  felt  his  neutrality  would  be  more  useful 
to  the  cause  of  peace.  He  received  his  Russian  guests 
with  the  utmost  politeness,  but  he  made  M.  Sazonov 
understand  that  he  could  not  enter  into  any  serious 
conversations. 

M.  Sazonov  was  not  strong  enough  to  insist  on  an 
immediate  solution  of  a  question  which  was  of  such  vital 
importance  to  the  future  policy  of  Russia  in  the  Balkans, 
and  the  interview  of  Constanza  ended  in  disappointment. 

Before  tw^o  months  elapsed  Germany  and  Russia  were 
at  war.  The  conflagration  that  wise  King  Carol  had 
worked  all  his  life  to  prevent  broke  forth,  and  at  its  very 
beginning  the  Roumanian  monarch,  whose  restraining 
influence  would  have  been  so  invaluable  when  peace  terms 
came  to  be  discussed,  suddenly  passed  away,  and  one  of 
the  most  important  factors  in  European  politics  vanished. 


CHAPTER   XII 

IMPRESSIONS    OF   BUCHAREST 

TN  the  course  of  my  duties  I  had  made  one  short  stay 
-■-  at  Bucharest  in  the  year  1882,  and  when  I  returned 
there  in  the  early  months  of  1914  I  found  the  city 
decidedly  improved.  It  had  lost  its  Oriental  tinge,  and 
had  become  quite  European.  Large  boulevards,  splendid 
shops,  and  more  nmsic  halls  than  ever  had  come  into 
being.  Altogether,  Bucharest  had  a  particularly  pros- 
perous air.  I  wrote  at  once  to  King  Carol's  aide-de-camp 
to  ask  for  the  honour  of  an  interview  with  His  Majesty, 
adding  that  I  had  arrived  that  same  morning  from  Berlin. 
I  learned  in  reply  that  the  King  was  at  his  castle  of  Sinaia, 
in  the  Carpathian  Mountains,  but  that  he  should  be 
advised  at  once  of  my  coming.  I  was  also  told  that  the 
Crown  Prince  and  Princess  Ferdinand  were  in  town,  and 
would  be  glad  to  see  me.  This  was,  of  course,  a  command 
which  I  hastened  to  obey. 

I  found  the  heir-presumptive  an  extremely  handsome, 
amiable  man,  with  pleasant  manners,  a  good  carriage, 
and  an  interesting  conversation.  He  seemed  to  be  in 
possession  of  strong  personal  ideas  in  everything,  but  one 

who  would  refrain  from  airing  them  unless  compelled  to 

136 


Prince  Ferdinand  of  Roumania       137 

do  so.  We  talked  about  Berlin,  where  he  had  spent  some 
of  his  early  years ;  of  London,  which  he  declared  he  liked 
exceedingly,  and  of  England.  He  strongly  admired  the 
English  system  of  government,  while  at  the  same  time 
owning  quite  frankly  that  it  would  not  be  applicable  any- 
where else.  I  tried  to  make  Prince  Ferdinand  tell  me 
his  impressions  about  his  recent  journey  to  Russia,  but 
he  adroitly  changed  the  conversation.  In  general  he 
appeared  to  have  wonderful  self-control  and  enough 
presence  of  mind  to  be  able  safely  to  extricate  himself 
from  difficult  or  embarrassing  situations. 

He  did  not  seem  to  be  at  all  tired  of  his  position 
as  heir  to  the  throne,  and,  if  anything,  rather  shy  at 
the  thought  of  his  future  responsibilities — a  state  not 
often  to  be  noticed  in  future  sovereigns.  On  the  con- 
trary, he  appeared  to  me  to  be  very  much  attached  to 
his  uncle,  whose  health  gave  him  genuine  anxiety. 

We  spoke  about  the  recent  Balkan  War,  and  he 
told  me  that  the  Roumanian  army  had  been  quite  ready 
to  start  on  a  campaign,  but  by  the  King's  wisdom  such 
a  misfortune  had  been  spared  to  the  country.  He 
produced  upon  me  the  impression  that  he  was  a  very 
sympathetic  man,  fully  ahve  to  the  duties  which  awaited 
him,  and  keenly  anxious  to  do  the  right  thing.  My  feel- 
ing was  that  he  was  too  serious  for  such  a  relatively  young 
man,  and  I  could  not  refrain  from  making  a  remark  to 
that  effect.  He  laughingly  replied  that  when  one  was  old 
enough  to  be  a  grandfather  and  had  grown-up  sons  and 
daughters,  it  was  about  time  to  be  serious. 


138         The  Near  East  from  Within 

The   Crown   Princess,   without   possessing   a  regular 
type  of  beauty,  was  pretty  and  fascinating.    Most  elegant 
in  her  carriage  and  bearing,  she  had  a  queenly  look  which 
gave  her  a  regal  dignity  bereft  of  either  hauteur  or  pride. 
One  could  see  at  once  that  she  was  conscious  of  her  high 
position,  but  that  she  did  not  feel  vain  of  it.     Her  con- 
versation was  brilliant,   and  touched  upon  almost  every 
subject  of  current  interest.     There  was  much  piquancy 
in  her  talk,  and  one  noticed  that  she  appreciated  admira- 
tion.    She  certainly  did  not  talk  of  her  children  with  the 
same  strong  affection  which  her  husband  had  manifested 
when  referring  to  them,  but  one  could  see  at  a  glance 
that  she  was  a  tender  as  well  as  a  devoted  wife.     There 
was  an  Enghsh  look  about  her  w^hich  was  very  pleasant, 
but  which  explained  the  latent  hostility  with  which  the 
German  Emperor  usually  referred  to  her,  especially  in 
recent  times.     Altogether,    she    was    a    most    attractive 
being,    with    enough    feminine    charm    to    produce    an 
impression  which  could  not  fail  to  attract. 

I  had  also  the  opportunity  to  talk  with  the  Prime 
Minister,  who  at  the  same  time  held  the  portfolio  of 
Foreign  Affairs.  M.  T.  Majoresco  had  presided  over  the 
conference  which  formulated  the  Treaty  of  Bucharest, 
that  had  put  an  end,  for  some  time  at  least,  to  the  Balkan 
trouble.  He  is,  perhaps,  the  most  capable  minister  in 
Roumania,  a  pleasant  companion,  and  a  man  singularly 
endowed  with  tact,  and  possessed  of  a  keen  political 
instinct.  The  King  appreciated  him  as  he  deserved,  but, 
it  seemed  to  me,  never  quite  trusted  him.    This,  however, 


A  Talk  with  M.  Majoresco  139 

must  not  be  taken  as  a  disparagement,  because,  so  far  as 
I  could  make  out,  King  Carol  trusted  no  one.  Few  knew 
his  personal  likes  and  dislikes,  or  his  private  opinions  and 
intentions.  M.  Majoresco  discussed  the  political  situation 
with  me,  and  I  was  very  nuich  struck  with  the  fact  that 
he  viewed  the  future  with  considerable  apprehension, 
particularly  with  regard  to  Germany.  It  was  evident  he 
did  not  care  to  say  all  that  he  thought  about  the  subject, 
especially  with  one  who,  like  myself,  was  supposed  to 
enjoy  the  confidence  of  those  in  highest  places  in  Berlin, 
but  one  could  see  that  he  knew  more  than  he  cared  to 
admit.  He  was  ardently  patriotic,  but  he  was  just  as 
evidently  an  ambitious  statesman  who  was  calculating  in 
his  mind  the  personal  honour  he  might  win  from  a  clever 
manipulation  of  the  affairs  of  his  country  at  that  particu- 
lar moment  of  its  existence.  He  struck  me  as  a  man  of 
strong  personality,  who  w^as  by  no  means  Bismarckian  in 
his  politics.  He  would  not  have  walked  over  the  dead 
bodies  of  his  own  convictions. 

I  spent  but  two  days  in  Bucharest  trying  to  ascertain 
something  tangible  as  to  the  feelings  of  the  Roumanians 
and  their  possible  attitude  in  case  of  a  European  eruption. 
My  impression  was  that  the  latter  would  entirely  depend 
on  the  King,  who  alone  represented  public  opinion  in 
Roumania. 

I  would  have  liked  to  remain  a  little  longer  in  the 
Roumanian  capital,  and  felt  rather  sorry  when  a  message 
arrived  from  the  King  requesting  my  immediate  attend- 
ance at  the  castle  of  Sinaia,  in  the  Carpathian  Mountains. 


140        The  Near  East  from  Within 

In  this  lovely  residence  which  he  had  built  for  himself, 
and  embellished  with  fastidious  taste,  King  Carol  generally 
spent  the  summer  season.  When  I  arrived  there  I  was 
received  by  the  Queen,  the  celebrated  Carmen  Sylva,  who 
welcomed  me  with  that  charm  she  alone  possesses  and 
which  makes  her  such  a  remarkably  attractive  personahty. 
She  explained  that  the  King  was  not  in  the  castle  at  the 
moment. 

Queen  Elizabeth  of  Roumania,  though  an  old  woman 
and  despite  her  many  trials  and  sorrows,  had  kept  the 
smile  and  lovely  eyes  which  had  made  the  Princess 
EHsabeth  of  Wied  such  a  fascinating  girl.  Her  great 
mental  gifts  have  never  been  questioned,  and  though  her 
eccentricities  had  given  rise  to  a  certain  amount  of 
ridicule,  she  was  acknowledged  by  universal  consent  to 
be  one  of  the  most  versatile  women  of  her  time.  In 
Roumania  her  work  in  the  domain  of  charity  and  educa- 
tion had  been  as  considerable  as  the  King's  in  that  of 
politics  and  material  development  of  the  prosperity  of 
the  country.  She  was  universally  loved  and  readily  for- 
given the  vagaries  of  her  artistic  imagination.  This 
temperament  bred  strange  ideas,  such  as  that  of  appear- 
ing one  day,  at  a  festivity  which  she  had  given  at  the 
palace  in  Bucharest,  disguised  as  a  Watteau  shepherdess, 
with  powdered  hair  and  short  pink  gown,  leading  a  white 
lamb  by  a  rose  ribbon,  which,  unnerved  by  the  novelty 
of  the  situation,  became  wild  in  the  ball-room.  The  fact 
is  that  the  mental  balance  of  the  Queen  had  been  upset 
by  the  death  of  her  only  child,  and  it  was  years  before 


A  Poetic  Queen  141 

she  fully  recovered.  This  sorrow  opened  her  heart  to  all 
who  were  sad  or  in  want.  The  good  she  did  was  enormous. 
It  would  have  been  difficult  to  find  a  higlier,  nobler  spirit 
than  that  of  the  Queen,  but,  unfortunately,  it  rarely  con- 
descended to  look  at  things  from  a  matter-of-fact  stand- 
point. If  she  happened  to  be  composing  a  poem  or  some 
beautiful  nuisical  piece,  which  for  the  time  being  absorbed 
all  her  intellectual  faculties,  it  transported  her  whole  soul 
into  higher  regions  whither  it  was  impossible  for  anyone 
less  gifted  to  follow.  When  one  looked  at  her  in  her 
flowing  white  garments,  with  the  picturesque  head-dress 
of  the  Roumanian  peasants,  in  the  half  light  which 
generally  surrounded  her,  she  appeared  like  some  fantastic 
yet  benign  fairy,  too  beautiful  to  be  true,  too  ethereal 
to  be  genuine.  One  could  very  well  understand  that  the 
King  admired  her  as  something  too  holy  even  to  desecrate 
by  a  thought  or  a  touch,  but  one  could  yet  easily  imagine 
that  his  strongly  practical  nature  would  have  preferred 
after  all,  in  order  to  be  entirely  happy,  a  wife  who  would 
have  sympathised  more  thoroughly  with  his  personal  tastes 
and  pursuits  and  shared  more  definitely  in  his  ambitions. 
I  was  asked  to  dine  with  the  royal  pair,  and  the  King 
welcomed  me  with  entire  cordiality.  He  had  returned  to 
the  castle  just  before  the  meal,  and  whilst  it  lasted  the 
conversation  remained  quite  trivial,  touching  only  on 
current  events ;  but  after  dinner  was  over  the  sovereign 
invited  me  into  his  study,  and,  having  asked  me  to  sit 
down,  began  at  once  to  speak  about  Berlin  and  the 
Emperor.     For  obvious  reasons  it  is  impossible  to  repro- 


142        The  Near  East  from  Within 

duce  even  a  tithe  of  the  momentous  interview  of  which 
I  was  instructed  to  take  a  verbal  reply  back  to  Berlin. 
Such,  it  seemed,  had  been  the  desire  of  William  II., 
and,  as  Carol  I.  rather  acidly  remarked,  a  wise  desire  too. 
"  I  cannot  very  well  advise  him  in  the  present  circum- 
stances. He  has  always  declared  himself  the  champion 
of  peace  in  Europe ;  he  has  advocated  it  constantly,  and 
all  at  once  you  find  him  seized  with  a  frantic  desire  to 
disturb  that  peace,  all  because  he  is  afraid  of  a  young 
man  whom  it  would  be  easy  for  him  to  reduce  to  utter 
powerlessness  if  he  really  desired  it.  You  may  not  under- 
stand it,  but  I  will  explain.  Of  course,  it  is  no  secret 
to  3'^ou  that  the  relations  of  the  Emperor  with  the  Crown 
Prince  are  anything  but  cordial.  The  heir  to  the  throne 
is  developing  most  dangerous  designs  against  his  father ; 
he  has  succeeded  in  making  himself  enormously  popular 
and  of  rallying  around  him  a  considerable  party  quite 
capable,  under  certain  provocations,  of  going  so  far  as 
conspiring  against  their  sovereign,  whom  they  accuse  of 
cowardice  in  regard  to  Russia.  It  is  those  people  who 
have  completely  inspired  the  Emperor  with  the  fear  that 
he  may  at  a  given  moment  be  overthrown  and  replaced 
by  his  son,  in  whom  the  military  party  in  Prussia  sees 
its  future  avenger  and  hero.  Your  Emperor  feels  this 
opposition  to  him  more  than  he  cares  to  say.  If  he  were 
sensible  he  w^ould  not  pay  attention  to  a  campaign  which 
is  bound  to  die  a  natural  death  if  left  to  itself,  but  he 
refuses  to  believe  that  half  the  attacks  made  against  his 
person  in  the  French  and  Russian  Press  are  inspired. 


Friendship  for  England  143 

and  in  some  cases  paid  for,  by  the  partisans  of  his  own 
son  in  Berhn." 

I  could  not  reply  to  this  strange  declaration,  which 
took  me  quite  unawares,  and  therefore  waited  for  the 
next  words  of  the  King.  Carol  I.  went  over  to  the 
window,  and  for  some  moments  remained  standing  at  it, 
looking  at  the  beautiful  landscape  with  the  dark  moun- 
tains for  its  background,  absorbed  seemingly  in  deep 
thought.  Then  he  turned,  and,  resuming  his  seat,  went 
on  in  a  more  matter-of-fact  voice  : 

"  It  is  not  wise  for  an  outsider  to  interfere  in  family 
questions.  I  cannot  afford,  or  rather  Roumania  cannot 
afford,  to  be  mixed  up  in  such  dangerous  matters.  She 
might  have  to  pay  too  dearly  for  it  later  on.  Personally, 
I  can  tell  you  that  I  think  the  Emperor  ought  to  resume 
his  old  line  of  conduct,  which  has  been  sucli  a  success 
in  the  past,  and  that  his  apprehensions  as  to  the  aggres- 
sive intentions  of  Russia  and  England  are  utterly 
fallacious.  If  William  were  a  little  patient,  he  would 
see  the  truth  of  this  remark.  I  certainly  won't  help  the 
Emperor  in  his  designs  against  England.  I  utterly  dis- 
approve of  them,  and,  moreover,  I  feel  convinced  that 
any  attempt  in  that  direction  must  end  in  disaster.  A 
sovereign  ought  to  look  at  things  objectively,  not  by  the 
light  of  his  personal  passions." 

"It  is  what  Your  Majesty  has  ahvays  done,"  I 
remarked.  "  But  does  Your  Majesty  really  believe  that 
the  Emperor  nurses  a  jealousy  in  the  respect  you  point 
out?  "  I  ventured  to  add. 


144         The  Near  East  from  Within 

"  Do  I  believe  it?  I  know  it !"  exclaimed  the  King, 
with  more  warmth  than  he  had  yet  shown.  "  I  know  it 
better  even  than  if  he  had  told  me  anything  about  it.  He 
is  essentially  of  a  jealous  nature.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
son  loathes  the  father  who  can  order  him  about,  put  him 
under  arrest  when  he  pleases,  and  who  alone  does  not 
see  in  him  the  Crown  Prince,  but  merely  a  naughty 
child  to  be  punished  for  the  slightest  fault  against  the 
disciphne  which  he  has  estabhshed  in  his  household. 
Jealousy  of  one  another  has  always  been  one  of  the 
dominant  features  of  the  character  of  the  Hohenzollerns. 

"Think  about  the  present  moment  in  the  light  of 
what  I  have  said.  Watch  it,  and  then  draw  your  own 
conclusions.  Go  back  to  Berlin,"  said  the  King,  after 
a  pause,  "tell  your  Emperor  that  the  only  advice  his 
old  relative  can  give  to  him  is  to  take  a  soothing  mixture 
and  to  go  to  bed  over  it.  Night  is  sometimes  the  best 
of  advisers,  and  he  had  better  try  not  to  dwell  upon  his 
son's  misdeeds.  The  boy's  ambitions  are  certainly  not 
worse  than  those  in  which  he  himself  indulged  during 
his  father's  short  reign.  History  repeats  itself.  Let  him 
take  the  lesson  to  heart,  and  remember  that  so  long  as 
he  remains  the  master  nothing  can  result  from  the  wild 
militarism  of  the  Crown  Prince." 

I  never  saw  King  Carol  after  that  day. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE   GERMAN    EMPEROR   AT    KONOPISCHT 

NOT  long  after  my  return  to  Berlin  from  Bucharest 
I  heard  that  WilHam  II.  was  going  to  pay  a  visit 
to  the  heir  presumptive  of  Austria-Hungary  at  Franz 
Ferdinand's  castle  of  Konopischt,  in  Bohemia. 

There  was  not  much  love  lost  between  Francis  Joseph 
and  his  heir  presumptive,  whose  domineering  temper  had 
more  than  once  jarred  upon  his  uncle's  nerves.  Franz 
Ferdinand  was  a  strong  character,  and  could  not  brook 
contradiction.  He  was  entirely  under  the  influence  of 
the  Duchess  of  Hohenberg,  his  morganatic  consort,  and 
of  the  Jesuits,  by  whom  her  marriage  with  the  Archduke 
had  been  made  possible.  His  leanings  were  frankly 
Clerical,  and  the  Liberals  looked  forward  with  misgiving 
toward  the  future,  being  persuaded  that  Franz  Ferdinand, 
at  the  instigation  of  the  Ultramontane  party,  would 
adopt  an  aggressive  policy  toward  Russia,  the  only  serious 
rival  of  his  ambitions  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula.  His  great 
friendship  with  King  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria  had  aroused 
considerable  suspicions  concerning  his  future  intentions, 
and  he  was  supposed  not  only  to  favour  the  views  of  the 
military  party  in  Austria,  but  also  those  of  the  statesmen 
k  145 


146         The  Near  East  from  Within 

who  advocated  the  intervention  of  Austria  in  the  internal 
affairs  of  Bulgaria  as  well  as  of  Servia. 

The  Archduke  had  been  suspected  also  of  sympathis- 
ing with  the  late  King  Milan  of  Servia  to  the  detriment  of 
the  Karageorgevitch  dynasty.  When  the  brutal  murder  of 
King  Alexander  and  Queen  Draga  had  taken  place,  the 
heir  to  the  Austrian  throne  was  supposed  to  have  urged 
upon  his  uncle  the  necessity  of  an  armed  intervention  of 
Austria  in  Servia,  the  ultimate  result  of  which  would  be 
the  permanent  occupation  of  Servia  by  the  armies  of  the 
Emperor  Francis  Joseph.  The  idea  had  been  viewed  with 
a  certain  degree  of  favour  by  the  leading  spirits  at  the 
Ball  Platz,  and  might  have  been  put  into  execution  had 
not  the  German  Emperor  interfered. 

The  Emperor  WiUiam's  intervention  was  deeply 
resented  by  the  Archduke,  and  for  some  time  their 
relations  remained  cool,  if  not  actually  strained.  Later 
on,  however,  they  grew  more  friendly,  thanks  chiefly  to 
the  influence  of  the  Duchess  of  Hohenberg,  who  out  of 
personal  motives  was  doing  her  utmost  to  make  friends 
with  those  who  were  likely  to  help  her.  The  Duchess, 
who  was  certainly  one  of  the  most  remarkable  women  of 
her  generation,  occupied  a  false  position  at  the  Vienna 
Court.  She  was  the  daughter  of  a  Bohemian  nobleman 
of  high  birth  and  lineage,  but,  her  father  having  but 
small  means,  she  had  been  taken  as  her  lady-in-waiting 
by  the  Archduchess  Isabella,  the  consort  of  the  Archduke 
Frederick,  more  out  of  pity  than  anything  else.  The 
Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand  had  been  struck  by  her  rare 


The  Duchess  of  Hohenberg  147 

intelligence  and  fascinated  by  her  clever  conversation. 
His  aunt  found  out  his  attraction  for  the  society  of  her 
lady-in-waiting,  and  had  turned  the  latter  out  of  her 
house.  The  Duchess  had  always  been  a  devout  daughter 
of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church ;  the  Jesuits,  therefore, 
for  reasons  which  may  not  have  been  disinterested,  used 
all  their  best  endeavours  to  induce  the  young  Archduke 
to  make  her  his  wife.  They  succeeded.  The  wedding 
was  celebrated  at  the  castle  of  Reichstadt,  in  Bohemia. 
The  progress  of  the  personal  history  of  Franz  Ferdinand 
and  his  morganatic  wife  is  not  pertinent  to  the  present 
narrative  until  after  a  long  period  from  the  wedding, 
when  the  Duchess  noticed  that  her  husband's  relations 
with  the  Emperor  William  had  lost  something  of  their 
old  cordiality.  She  applied  herself  to  re-establish  them 
and  to  make  friends  on  her  own  account  with  the  German 
monarch,  feeling  sure  that  his  protection  would  help  her 
over  the  difficulties  she  knew  would  be  in  her  path  on 
the  day  when  her  consort  became  Emperor.  William  II., 
on  his  part,  was  glad  to  find  an  ally  in  the  wife  of  Franz 
Ferdinand,  and  he  even  invited  the  couple  to  visit 
Potsdam,  where  he  treated  the  Duchess  as  due  to  receive 
like  honour  to  that  which  would  have  been  hers  had  she 
been  of  the  blood  royal.  He  had  long  talks  with  her, 
during  which  he  gave  her  to  understand  that  he  would 
always  look  upon  her  not  only  as  his  equal,  but  also  as 
a  good  friend  and  adviser  in  all  political  matters  of  mutual 
interest  to  the  monarchy  of  Austria-Hungary  and  to 
Germany. 


148        The  Near  East  from  Within 

Nevertheless,  when  the  Balkan  complications  arose, 
the  personal  relations  of  the  Emperor  with  his  friend 
again  underwent  a  change.  William  II.  said  he  did  not 
approve  of  the  intervention  of  Austria  in  favour  of 
Bulgaria.  He  did  not  wish  to  appear  at  that  particular 
moment  too  well-disposed  toward  King  Ferdinand.  It 
was  at  that  time  that  William  II.  first  entertained 
seriously  his  great  plan  to  wrest  the  Suez  Canal  from 
England.  It  would  not,  therefore,  have  been  consistent 
to  seem  too  interested  in  the  aspirations  of  Ferdinand. 
By  reason,  moreover,  of  these  various  circumstances  he 
had  to  exercise  a  good  deal  of  caution  in  his  relations  with 
the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand,  and  he  endeavoured  to 
persuade  him  that  it  was  not  in  his  interest  to  create  a 
conflict  between  Austria  and  Servia  for  the  sake  of  Bosnia 
and  Herzegovina,  or  even  of  Turkey. 

The  Duchess  of  Hohenberg  entered  readily  into  these 
ideas,  exerting  her  influence  over  her  husband  to  induce 
him  to  believe  that  his  interests,  even  more  than  those 
of  his  country,  demanded  that  he  should  cause  peaceful 
elements  to  prevail  in  the  decisions  of  the  Viennese 
Cabinet.  A  visit  which  the  couple  paid  to  the  King  and 
Queen  of  England  at  Windsor  Castle,  during  which  the 
Duchess  was  treated  with  extreme  courtesy,  if  perhaps 
with  a  shade  less  effusiveness  than  had  been  the  case  at 
Potsdam,  confirmed  her  in  the  idea  that  the  best  policy 
her  future  sovereign  could  follow  was  to  remain  quiet 
and  wait  for  the  natural  development  of  events. 

The  result  of  my  visit  to  Bucharest — as  the  reader 


William  II.  and  Franz  Ferdinand     149 

knows — was  a  flat  refusal  to  entertain  the  proposal 
inferred  in  the  letter  I  carried  from  William  II.  to  King 
Carol.  The  rebuff,  however,  it  transpired,  did  not  cause 
the  German  Emperor  to  bury  his  ambition.  He  trans- 
ferred his  attentions  to  the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand. 

The  task  before  William  II.  was  difficult  and  full  of 
intricacies,  but  not  beyond  his  versatile  powers.  True, 
he  had  discouraged  Franz  Ferdinand  earlier,  and  now  it 
became  incumbent  to  provide  some  incentive  to  stir  the 
Archduke  into  action.  To  my  mind  this  lies  at  the 
bottom  of  the  self-invited  visit  to  Konopischt  and  the 
preliminary  flattering  of  the  Duchess  of  Hohenberg. 

He  spent  three  days  with  the  Archducal  couple,  and 
used  his  best  eloquence  to  persuade  the  heir  to  the 
Austrian  throne  that  Russia  had  made  up  her  mind  to 
interfere  in  favour  of  Servia,  and  aid  her  desire  to  win 
the  two  provinces  of  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina.  Their 
annexation  by  Austria  had  long  been  a  thorn  in  the  side 
of  Servia.  Neither  the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand  nor 
Count  Berchtold,  who  had  been  asked  to  meet  William  II. 
at  Konopischt,  fell  in  with  his  ideas.  The  Austrian 
Foreign  Secretary  did  not  care  to  raise  a  storm  the  magni- 
tude of  which  he  could  imagine,  and  the  Archduke  feared 
that  a  w^ar  would  resolve  itself  into  failure,  so  far  as 
Austrian  ambitions  were  concerned.  From  the  account 
of  this  visit,  as  it  was  told  me  quite  soon  afterwards,  the 
Archduke  had  begun  to  resent  the  authority  which 
William  II.  had  assumed  over  him.  More  than  that, 
his  visit  to  England  had  convinced  him  that  the  British 


150        The  Near  East  from  Within 

Government  was  doing  its  best  to  restrain  bellicose 
tendencies. 

It  therefore  became  difficult  for  the  German  Emperor 
to  convince  his  friend  that  the  moment  had  really  come 
when  the  existence  of  German  civilisation,  to  use  his  own 
expression,  was  threatened.  William  II.  then  tried  the 
Duchess  of  Hohenberg,  but  he  found  her  even  more 
averse  than  the  Archduke  to  a  warlike  pohcy.  She 
distinctly  told  the  Emperor  that  the  time  had  not  arrived 
when  the  Archduke  could  think  of  saddening  the  few 
years,  or  perhaps  even  the  few  months,  which  his  uncle 
had  left  to  live  by  precipitating  the  horrors  of  a  European 
war.  William  II.  became  very  angry,  and  without  a 
word  left  the  Duchess. 

The  last  day  of  the  Emperor  William's  stay  in  that 
old  Bohemian  castle  was  by  no  means  pleasant.  Con- 
siderable restraint  had  taken  the  place  of  the  easy,  familiar 
intercourse  which  had  marked  the  beginning  of  the  visit. 
A  few  hours  before  he  said  good-bye  the  Emperor  tried 
to  ascertain  the  Archduke's  intentions ;  but  Franz 
Ferdinand  was  not  in  a  good  temper,  and  his  blunt  reply 
was  to  the  effect  that  most  certainly  he  was  not  going  to 
draw  chestnuts  out  of  the  fire  for  another  person.  The 
two  men  parted  in  anger,  and  the  Emperor  remarked  to 
the  aide-de-camp  who  had  accompanied  him  to  Kono- 
pischt,  that  the  Archduke  would  never  listen  to  reason 
and  was  blind  to  where  lay  his  best  interests. 

With  all  his  clumsiness  Franz  Ferdinand  was  not  a 
bad  judge  of  character. 


Sarajevo!  151 

A  month  had  hardly  gone  after  the  visit  of  the  German 
Emperor  to  the  historic  and  noble  castle  hidden  among 
the  roses  which  made  its  gardens  such  a  thing  of  beauty, 
when,  in  Sarajevo,  a  murderer  raised  his  pistol,  and  with 
two  angry  shots  destroyed  two  lives.  These  shots  did 
more — they  fired  the  first  signal  of  a  tragedy  the  like  of 
which  the  world  has  never  seen. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

SERVIA   IN   THE    'EIGHTIES 

THE  title  I  have  given  to  the  present  chapter  may 
be  somewhat  of  a  misnomer,  seeing  that  the  action 
of  the  story  told  herein  begins  in  the  'seventies  and 
stretches  through  the  next  decade  into  the  'nineties.  The 
'eighties  was  a  period  pregnant  with  happenings  in  the 
lives  of  the  Servian  royal  family  and  full  of  portent  for 
the  future  history  of  Europe.  Of  these  events  the 
murder  of  Franz  Ferdinand  was  a  distant  reflex,  for 
which  reason  it  becomes  opportune  to  dip  into  the 
tempestuous  past  of  the  Obrenovitch  dynasty. 

In  those  days  Servia  was  still,  as  for  centuries  it  had 
been,  a  revolutionary,  half -tamed  country,  one  in  which 
human  life  counted  for  little,  and  where  was  exhibited  an 
utter  disregard  of  the  common  laws  of  mankind.  The 
politicians  of  those  days,  too,  were  actuated  by  a  perpetual 
opportunism  marked  by  a  selfishness  that  bordered  on  the 
marvellous,  so  guileless  was  it  of  any  attempt  at  disguise. 

The  Karageorgevitch  dynasty  had  superseded  the 
Obrenovitch.  Perhaps  "blotted  out"  is  the  nearer 
expression.  The  father  of  the  last  representative  was 
King    Milan,   one   gifted   with    uncommon    insight   and 

152 


King  Milan  of  Servia  153 

adaptability,  but  spoiled  by  Oriental  guile  and  a  mania 
for  material  pleasure.  He  was  popular  in  his  country  for 
a  considerable  period,  and  probably  would  have  contrived 
to  keep  the  appreciation  of  his  people  had  it  not  been 
for  his  domestic  quarrels  with  his  wife  and  the  disgraceful 
scenes  that  followed.  He  understood  perfectly  well  the 
nature  of  his  subjects;  when  to  flatter,  equally  as  the 
psychological  moment  to  crush  his  many  enemies.  But 
he  was  a  man  entirely  without  principle.  After  having 
appeared  to  favour  Russian  interests,  he  suddenly  turned 
against  Russia,  and  devoted  all  his  energies  to  promoting 
Austrian  influence  in  Servia. 

The  reason  for  his  sudden  volte-jace  lay  in  his  personal 
relations  with  Queen  Natalie,  whose  Russian  nationality 
gave  him  a  pretext  for  declaring  himself  the  resolute 
opponent  of  her  country.     He  accused  her  of  sacrificing 
the  interests  of  Servia.    Whether  this  accusation  was  true 
or  not  I  cannot  tell,  but  it  can  hardly  be  denied  that 
Natalie,  in  the  different  crises  of  her  troubled  life,  sought 
Russian  help  and  tried  to  foster  Russian  influence  among 
her  people.    She  believed  that  she  would  thereby  be  more 
secure  from  the  likelihood  of  an  attempt  on  the  part  of 
her  husband  to  rid  himself  summarily  of  her,  which  was 
her  constant  fear.    She  was  not  clever,  or  she  would  have 
soon  found  out  her  mistake.     Milan  had  been  very  much 
in  love  with  her,  and,  if  one  can  believe  all  that  one  was 
told  by  people  who  knew  the  secrets  of  the  royal  alcove, 
felt  very  much  affronted  at  the  curt  way  in  which  she 
received,  or  rather  rejected,  his  affection.     Beautiful  as 


154        The  Near  East  from  Within 

she  undoubtedly  was,  she  had  no  idea  of  the  power  which 
her  beauty  gave  her,  nor  of  the  advantage  it  might  have 
proved  had  she  only  known  how  to  use  it.  She  was 
inordinately  vain,  and  was  in  her  way  just  as  profoundly 
selfish  as  the  King  himself.  She  loved  intrigue,  and  cared 
only  for  the  people  who  consented  to  flatter  her.  There 
was  a  moment  when  she  had  hoped  to  overthrow  King 
Milan  and  get  herself  proclaimed  regent  of  the  kingdom 
during  the  minority  of  her  son.  Her  ambition  in  this 
connection  came  to  the  knowledge  of  her  husband,  who 
taxed  her  with  it  and  asserted  that  Russia  was  at  the 
back  of  it  all. 

Whether  the  plot  had  really  existed  or  not  it  is 
difficult  to  say  at  this  distance,  but  it  has  been  related  to 
me  with  minute  circumstance  by  more  than  one.  It  is 
impossible  to  say  more,  because  the  first  king  of  the  new 
dynasty  caused  all  papers  connected  with  the  private  life 
as  well  as  with  the  political  activity  of  the  Obrenovitchs 
to  be  destroyed.  It  certainly  was  not  out  of  the  range 
of  possibility,  when  it  is  remembered  that  after  the  war 
of  1877  Russia  enjoyed  considerable  popularity  in  Servia, 
and  that  the  so-called  Russia  party,  led  by  M.  Pashitch, 
had  many  adherents.  Milan  was  a  man  who  never  looked 
beyond  the  necessities  or  the  satisfactions  of  the  moment. 
All  the  political  and  private  mistakes  he  fell  into  pro- 
ceeded from  his  inability  to  weigh  carefully  the  possible 
consequences  of  his  actions  and  his  instabihty  of  character. 
In  private  life  he  might  have  been  endured,  but  as  a  king 
he  was  an  execrable  failure. 


Queen  Natalie  i55 

The  Queen,  who,  as  I  have  said,  might  have  led  the 
King  at  her  will  had  she  only  given  herself  the  trouble 
to  do  so,  was  in  her  way  just  as  impulsive  and  passionate 
as  her  husband.  To  these  defects  she  added  a  jealousy 
which  was  the  more  strange  and  inexplicable  in  that  she 
did  not  care  for  him.  She  bitterly  resented  his  numerous 
infidelities,  and  despised  him  for  them.  For  his  part,  the 
King  studied  to  shower  one  insult  upon  another  on  her, 
thwarting  her  in  her  dearest  feelings.  The  disgraceful 
story  of  the  kidnapping— it  can  hardly  be  called  anything 
else — of  her  son  from  her  is  remembered  in  Servia  to 
this  day,  and  those  who  knew  well  the  royal  family  at 
that  time  assert  that  this  act,  coming  as  it  did  from  a 
man  who  had  never  troubled  much  about  his  child,  was 
the  prime  factor  in  the  subsequent  troubles  from  which 
Servia  has  suffered.  The  child  would  undoubtedly  have 
had  a  better  chance  if  left  in  the  care  of  the  Queen,  and, 
indeed,  he  might  never  have  been  taken  away  had  she 
only  acted  rationally.  Instead,  she  was  actuated  by  the 
wish  to  make  herself  unpleasant  to  her  husband,  and 
sacrificed  the  interests  of  her  son  to  that  sole  object. 

She  had  been  advised  by  one  of  her  relatives  who  lived 
in  Russia  to  apply  to  the  Tsar  Alexander  III.  and  claim 
his  protection  against  Milan,  taking  at  the  same  time  the 
little  Crown  Prince  to  Petersburg.  The  idea  was  not  a 
bad  one,  and  many  subsequent  sorrows  might  have  been 
spared  to  her  had  she  only  followed  that  wise  plan.  But 
she  believed  that  she  was  able  alone  to  cope  with  her 
numerous    enemies,    and    had    a    sufficient    number    of 


156        The  Near  East  from  Within 

partisans  in  Servia  to  bring  about  Milan's  deposition. 
Some  people  say  that  she  was  imprudent  enough  to  write 
in  that  sense  to  a  false  friend,  who  took  the  letter  forth- 
with to  the  King,  and  that  this  letter  confirmed  the  King 
in  his  intention  to  appeal  to  the  German  authorities  to 
allow  him  possession  of  his  child  after  he  had  divorced 
the  Queen. 

The  King  hesitated  for  some  days  before  deciding  to 
use  force  to  recover  his  son,  and  was  approached  on  the 
subject  by  one  of  the  confidential  friends  of  William  II. 
At  that  time  the  Emperor  had  only  been  on  the  throne 
a  few  weeks,  but  had  followed  most  carefully  the  course 
of  events  in  Servia  during  his  career  as  Crown  Prince. 
He  saw  his  opportunity  to  establish  Austrian  influence  at 
Belgrade,  and  thus  have  an  atmosphere  congenial  to 
German  ideas.  It  did  not  coincide  with  the  interests  of 
the  Triple  AlHance  to  allow  Russia  to  become  paramount 
in  Servia,  and  Wilham  II.  well  knew  that  any  decided 
antagonistic  step  taken  by  Milan  in  regard  to  Natalie 
would  more  than  anything  else  throw  him  into  the  arms 
of  Austria,  and  consequently  Germany  would  thus  be 
able  to  establish  herself  firmly  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula. 

Milan  had  as  a  great  friend  one  of  the  few  really 
intelhgent  men  in  Austria-Hungary.  His  name  was 
Count  Eugene  Zichy,  a  nobleman  of  high  lineage, 
enormous  fortune,  and  great  influence,  who  detested 
Russia,  and  w^ho  was  constantly  dreaming  of  the  day 
when  Hungary  would  be  able  to  avenge  herself  on  the 
Tsar    for    the    ruthlessness    with    which    his    ancestor 


Count  Zichy's  Dream  157 

Nicholas  I.  had  crushed  the  mutiny  of  1848.  He  exer- 
cised considerable  influence  over  the  mind  of  Milan, 
whom  he  often  helped  pecuniarily,  and  to  whom  he 
remained  faithful  to  the  end. 

Count  Zichy  conceived  the  idea  of  creating  a  huge 
Balkanic  State  entirely  dependent  upon  and  welded  to 
the  Triple  Alliance,  which  at  a  given  moment  might 
support  it  in  an  attack  on  Russia.  It  was  he  who  first 
suggested  that,  thanks  to  the  laxity  of  her  diplomacy,  the 
Tsar  might  easily  be  ousted  out  of  the  Balkans.  Count 
Zichy  knew  Russia  very  well,  had  often  been  there,  and 
carefully  observed  her  weaknesses  and  noted  the  mistakes 
of  those  who  governed  her.  He  deluded  himself  to  believe 
that  with  perseverance  the  vast  empire  of  the  Tsar  might 
be  reduced  to  the  rank  of  a  secondary  Power,  and,  more- 
over, he  persuaded  Milan  that  an  aUiance  with  Turkey 
on  the  one  hand,  and  with  Germany  and  Austria  on  the 
other,  would  permit  him  to  become  the  leader  of  a  Balkan 
confederacy  owing  nothing  to  Russia,  and  give  him  a 
position  far  superior  even  to  that  of  Ferdinand  of  Saxe- 
Coburg. 

Milan  acquiesced  more  readily  because  this  advice  was 
accompanied  by  a  considerable  gift  of  money,  presented 
in  the  form  of  a  loan.  He  dismissed  Natalie,  and  forced 
the  Archbishop  of  Belgrade  to  pronounce  the  divorce  he 
required.  He  then  set  himself  resolutely  to  the  task  of 
reorganising  not  only  his  army,  but  also  the  whole  of  the 
Civil  Service  of  Servia,  according  to  the  model  of  German 
administration.    Finally,  it  was  through  Milan  as  an  inter- 


158        The  Near  East  from  Within 

mediary  that  the  question  of  sending  a  German  mihtary 
mission  to  Constantinople  was  suggested  to  influential 
men  in  Turkey,  who  in  their  turn  persuaded  the  Sultan 
to  secure  for  himself  the  services  of  Prussian  officers  who 
could  train  his  troops  according  to  the  traditions  of 
Moltke,  Roon,  and  all  the  other  military  heroes  upon 
whom  Prussia  prided  herself. 

That  policy,  if  pursued  with  any  perseverance  and 
steadfastness,  might  have  been  useful  to  Servia,  no 
matter  how  distasteful  it  would  have  proved  to  Russia. 
Unfortunately,  Milan  was  not  capable  of  perseverance, 
and  he  neither  followed  consistently  the  line  he  had  taken 
nor  attempted  to  make  it  triumph.  He  spasmodically 
rushed  into  extremes ;  one  moment  favouring  Russia,  the 
next  Austria.  By  the  instability  of  his  conduct  he  dis- 
gusted all  his  warmest  partisans,  and,  to  culminate  his 
errors,  unexpectedly  abdicated  in  favour  of  his  son,  under 
a  regency. 

A  warm  supporter  of  Russia,  M.  Pashitch  at  once 

became  Prime  Minister,  and  applied  himself  to  the  best 

» 

of  his  ability  to  re-establish  good  relations  with  Russia. 
Alexander  III.  was  still  alive  at  that  time,  and  he  was 
disposed  to  look  with  an  approving  eye  on  the  renewal 
of  the  terms  of  friendship  which  had  formerly  existed 
between  Belgrade  and  Petersburg.  Little  by  little  things 
assumed  their  former  course,  and  Russia  became  again 
an  element  of  support  for  Servia  in  the  latter's  relations 
with  her  immediate  neighbours.  Russian  officers  were 
called  to  Belgrade  to  serve  as  instructors  to  the  Servian 


Reconciliation  of  Milan  and  Natalie  159 

army,  which  was  reorganised  on  the  Russian  model. 
Austria  began  to  be  represented  as  an  enemy  of  Servian 
independence,  and  accused  of  intriguing  in  order  to  be 
given  the  direction  of  the  education  of  the  young  King, 
over  whom  Milan  had  renounced  control. 

This  calm,  however,  did  not  last  long.  The  first 
person  to  break  the  peace  was  Natalie,  who  declared  that 
she  wanted  to  come  back  to  Belgrade  to  resume  her  rank 
as  Queen.  The  news  was  sufficient  to  draw  the  ex-King 
back  to  Servia,  where  he  began  to  intrigue  against  his 
old  Ministers.  A  plot  was  hatched  which  had  for  its 
object  the  imprisonment  of  the  leading  members  of  the 
so-called  "  Russian  party,"  and  very  soon  Milan  found 
himself  again  at  the  head  of  affairs,  this  time  as  the 
guardian  of  his  own  son. 

He  installed  himself  at  the  Konak  of  Belgrade,  and 
made  himself  very  much  at  home  there.  All  this  time 
Natalie  was  living  at  the  house  of  a  friend.  One  day 
she  met  her  former  husband  in  the  street.  This  led  to 
further  meetings,  and  in  a  few  days  Milan  asked  her  to 
forget  the  past  and  to  return  to  him,  an  offer  which  for 
once  she  was  wise  enough  to  accept,  realising  that  her 
actual  position  was  far  from  enviable.  She  left  the 
city  for  a  few  days,  and  when  she  returned  to  it,  after 
the  decree  which  had  reimited  her  to  Milan,  the  city  of 
Belgrade  gave  her  a  most  enthusiastic  w^elcome.  She  had 
lost  none  of  her  former  popularity  in  Servia. 

With  the  return  of  Natalie  things  changed  consider- 
ably at  the  Court  of  her  son.     Owing  to  his  youth  the 


i6o         The  Near  East  from  Within 

boy,  though  King  in  name,  was  not  allowed  to  e?  ircise 
any  authority.  Milan  held  the  reins  of  government  and 
was  responsible  for  the  conduct  of  pubhc  affairs.  The 
part  suited  him.  It  caused  chagrin  to  the  Queen,  who 
saw  her  hopes  blasted  once  more.  She  had  to  smile  on 
the  many  Austrians  who  crowded  into  Belgrade,  where 
Milan  received  them  with  open  arms,  and  she  had,  more- 
over, to  submit  to  the  wild  unrestraint  of  the  King. 
Very  soon  life  at  the  Konak  became  impossible,  and  as 
the  Queen  declared  that  nothing  would  ever  make  her 
exile  herself  a  second  time,  Milan  had  to  go,  leaving  his 
son  to  the  care  of  Queen  Natalie. 

The  Queen's  triumph  did  not  last  long.  The  Cabinet, 
and  M.  Pashitch  especially — who  though  not  in  power, 
yet  was  absolute  master  of  the  situation — found  out  that 
the  Queen,  no  longer  fearing  her  husband,  was  intriguing 
to  bring  about  an  armed  intervention  of  Russia  in  Servia. 
But  finding  that  no  one  listened  to  her,  and  that  she 
was  fast  losing  any  influence  she  might  have  possessed 
in  the  past,  Natalie  forsook  her  son,  and  left  again 
for  Paris. 

Before  she  left,  however,  she  managed  to  have  a  long 
conversation  with  her  son.  During  her  absence  from 
Belgrade  his  affection  had  suffered  alienation,  and  he  had 
become  imbued  with  the  belief  that  she  was  so  swayed  by 
ambition  that  she  would  have  scrupled  at  nothing  to 
wield  unfettered  the  power  she  coveted.  He  was,  there- 
fore, pleasantly  surprised  when  he  found  that  Natalie 
advised  him  to  put  an  end  to  the  strife  which  was  fast 


M.  Pashitch  and  Russia  i6i 

making  the  Court  of  Belgrade  the  laughing-stock  of 
the  world.  He  should,  she  said,  secure  the  necessary 
authority  to  rule  the  State  independently  of  his  advisers, 
none  of  whom  was  disinterested.  She  recommended 
certain  officers  who  would  be  willing  people  to  help  him 
in  that  enterprise,  and  before  she  went  away  mother  and 
son  had  decided  upon  a  plan  which  they  honestly  believed 
was  born  in  their  own  brains,  but  which  had  in  reality 
come  from  Germany  through  the  instrumentality  of  the 
Queen's  sister,  the  Princess  Ghika,  whose  husband 
occupied  the  position  of  Roumanian  Minister  at  Berhn, 
and  with  whom  the  Emperor  William  had  struck  up  a 
great  friendship. 

It  was  that  sovereign  who,  seeing  that  M.  Pashitch 
was  once  more  gaining  ground  with  his  ideas  of  a  Servo- 
Russian  rapprochement,  had  made  another  attempt  to 
snatch  Servia  and  her  young  King  from  the  snares  of 
Russian  influence — which  was  the  way,  I  was  told, 
Wilham  II.  had  referred  to  the  matter;  and  I  have  no 
doubt  that  he  really  viewed  himself  as  the  ordained  saviour 
of  Servia.  The  German  Emperor  suggested  to  Princess 
Ghika  that  the  best  thing  her  sister  could  do  was  to 
induce  her  son  to  proclaim  himself  of  age,  and  thus 
deliver  himself  from  the  Ministers  who  held  him  in 
thraldom.  Natalie  was  at  once  converted  to  that  point 
of  view,  and,  as  we  have  seen,  persuaded  young  Alexander 
to  take  the  step. 

These  incidents  explain  the  hidden  causes  that  finally 
led  to  such  grave  results  at  the  time  of  the  assassination 


i62         The  Near  East  from  Within 

of  the  unfortunate  son  of  Natalie,  and  later  still  to  the 
fate  which  overtook  the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand  and 
his  wife.  Wide  apart  as  the  two  catastrophes  seem  to 
stand  from  each  other,  they  yet  proceed  from  the  same 
root-cause  and  are  an  outcome  of  the  same  reckless 
ambitions. 


CHAPTER  XV 

ALEXANDER  OF  SERVIA  AND  QUEEN  DRAGA 

"OETWEEN  the  warring  influences  of  his  father  and 
-*-^  mother  it  is  no  wonder  that  when  Alexander  be- 
came King  of  Servia  the  poor  child  knew  but  little  of 
principles  and  was  prone  to  succumb  to  the  first  tempta- 
tion which  arose.  He  had  seen  those  whose  conduct 
ought  to  have  been  an  example  to  him  resort  to  perfidious 
manoeuvres  in  order  to  harm  one  another;  he  had  had 
every  opportunity  to  watch  the  chicanery  of  the  different 
political  leaders  who  in  turns  ruled  the  country ;  he  had 
listened  to  men  who  constantly  told  him  that  in  politics 
the  end  justified  the  means,  and  that  victory  belonged  to 
the  side  who  lied  and  cheated  to  the  best  effect. 

In  his  boyhood  he  had  been  devoted  to  his  mother, 
but  when,  in  a  literal  sense,  he  had  been  snatched  from 
her  arms  he  had  fallen  under  the  influence  of  his 
unprincipled  father,  who,  to  be  revenged  on  the  wife 
who  had  disdained  him,  had  blackened  her  character  to 
his  son.  The  result  was  that  Alexander  of  Servia  grew 
to  despise  both  his  parents,  and  at  eighteen  years  of 
age  was  a  youth  who  respected  nothing  and  who  was 

absorbed  in  himself  and  his  personal  pursuits. 

163 


i64         The  Near  East  from  Within 

When  Natalie  returned  to  Belgrade,  reconciled  at 
least  in  appearance  to  her  husband,  she  found  her  boy 
cold  and  disdainful.  He  had  forgotten  the  tenderness 
she  had  lavished  upon  him  in  the  past,  as  well  as  his  own 
affection  for  her.  It  is  but  natural  that  she  resented  this 
state  of  things  deeply,  and  that  her  feelings  in  regard  to 
Milan  became  even  more  bitter  than  they  had  been  when 
he  had  divorced  her.  When  she  returned  to  Servia,  and 
had  consented  to  condone  the  past,  the  act  did  not  carry 
with  it  a  forgetfulness  of  his  conduct.  What  she  had 
desired  was  to  gather  around  her  once  more  her  former 
friends  and  partisans  at  the  Konak  of  Belgrade. 

It  was  not  long  before  she  found  that,  as  the  mother 
of  the  young  sovereign  who  had  replaced  his  father  upon 
the  throne,  she  was  watched  in  all  her  movements,  and 
that  everyone  was  trying  to  represent  her  to  her  son 
Alexander  as  an  ambitious,  unscrupulous  woman,  who 
would  not  hesitate  even  to  commit  crime  if  she  saw  in 
its  accomplishment  a  personal  advantage  for  herself. 

Natalie  applied  herself  to  overcome  the  prejudices 
which  had  been  instilled  into  her  son's  mind  and  to  win 
his  confidence.  This  did  not  prove  so  difficult  after  all, 
despite  the  evident  coolness  with  which  the  young  King 
treated  his  mother,  because  Alexander  deeply  felt  the 
need  of  a  friend  in  whom  he  could  confide.  When,  there- 
fore, she  explained  to  him  that  he  ought  to  make  an 
attempt  to  govern  alone,  and  to  rid  himself  of  a  regency 
which  insisted  upon  treating  him  like  a  baby,  he  listened 
with  favour  to  the  idea. 


Alexander's  Coup  d'Etat  165 

As  I  have  already  mentioned,  the  Queen  was  partly 
advised  by  her  sister,  the  Princess  Ghika,  in  whom  the 
Emperor  William  II.  had  found  a  warm  ally,  and  who 
inspired  Natahe  in  the  campaign  which  the  latter  waged 
against  the  principal  Servian  statesmen  who  wanted  to 
force  the  young  King  to  act  according  to  their  ideas  and 
opinions.  The  Queen  proceeded  with  the  utmost  caution, 
and  directed  the  conspiracy  with  such  consummate  skill 
that  very  few  so  much  as  suspected  its  existence.  Alex- 
ander, therefore,  proclaimed  himself  of  age  on  April  1st, 
1893,  and  assumed  the  conduct  of  the  affairs  of  the 
Government  before  anyone  in  Belgrade  had  even  thought 
he  had  the  slightest  wish  to  do  so. 

At  first  this  act  of  independent  authority  made  the 
young  King  very  popular  throughout  Servia.  Everybody 
hoped  great  things  from  the  boy  who  had  shown  he  was 
a  man  instead  of  a  puppet,  and  one  and  all  hailed  his 
act  of  independence  with  joy ;  the  coup  was  considered 
to  have  been  opportune  and  well  planned.  Milan  became 
more  unpopular  than  ever.  He  tried  to  have  an  explana- 
tion with  the  young  King,  but  his  questions  were  met 
with  such  freezing  politeness  that  he  decided  not  to 
pursue  them  any  farther,  and  retired  to  Hungary,  where 
he  was  welcomed  by  his  old  friend.  Count  Zichy. 

Count  Zichy  was  an  extremely  clever  man,  and  he  at 
once  made  up  his  mind  that  it  was  worth  while  to  try, 
by  making  use  of  the  imdercurrents  in  the  Court,  to 
drive  the  young  King  into  the  embrace  of  Austria.  In 
order  to  achieve  this  object  Count  Zichy  spared  neither 


i66         The  Near  East  from  Within 

trouble  nor  money,  and  it  was  principally  due  to  his 
efforts  in  this  direction  that  Servia  became  inundated 
with  people  of  Austrian  birth.  No  pains  were  spared  to 
transform  Servia  into  an  Austrian  province. 

The  Count  stood  high  in  the  good  graces  of  the 
Emperor  William,  who  had  invited  him  on  more  than 
one  occasion  to  shoot  with  him.  During  the  frequent 
visits  he  made  to  Berlin  he  had  been  made  acquainted 
with  the  general  outlines  of  the  plans  of  the  German 
sovereign,  and  had  entered  with  enthusiasm  into  his  views 
as  to  the  necessity  of  putting  an  end  to  Russian  designs 
in  the  Balkan  Peninsula.  The  Count  became  the  princi- 
pal agent  of  Prussia  in  Servia,  and  he  could  act  with 
the  more  impunity  because  no  one  dreamed  the  inner 
politics  of  that  country  could  be  of  the  slightest  interest 
to  the  wise  people  who  ruled  at  Wilhelmstrasse. 

Very  soon  the  apparent  lull  in  home  politics  which 
had  followed  the  assumption  of  the  reins  of  the  Govern- 
ment by  King  Alexander  came  to  an  end,  and  the  battle 
for  supremacy  in  Servia  was  resumed  with  renewed 
vigour.  Amid  all  this  turmoil  King  Alexander  lost  his 
way;  he  felt  helpless  in  presence  of  all  these  rivalries, 
animosities,  and  strifes,  and,  to  make  matters  more 
perplexing  still  for  the  lad — Alexander  was  no  more 
than  that— the  Queen  also  left  Belgrade,  saying  to  her 
son  that  as  he  would  not  listen  to  her  advice  he  must  act 
on  his  own  responsibility.  WilUam  II.,  in  his  interest 
in  the  welfare  of  Servia,  wrote  once  or  twice  to  King 
Alexander,  urging  him  to  consider  Austria  as  his  best 


Madame  Draga  Maschin  167 

friend  and  his  only  protection  against  Russia.  And  all 
this  time  the  quiet  influence  of  Princess  Ghika  was  busy. 

Perplexed,  worried,  and  utterly  unable  to  see  what 
path  he  ought  to  enter  upon,  Alexander  took  a  short 
holiday  in  the  hope  that  the  quietness  would  enable  him 
to  decide  upon  a  course  which  would  be  best  for  Servia. 
He  went  to  Biarritz  to  see  his  mother,  and  there  fell 
under  the  charm  of  Madame  Draga  Maschin,  the  lovely 
woman  whom  he  was  ultimately  to  make  his  wife. 

Madame  Draga  Maschin  was  at  that  time  something 
like  thirty-two  years  of  age.  She  had  been  married  to 
an  officer  in  the  Servian  army,  Colonel  Maschin,  from 
whom,  however,  she  had  very  quickly  secured  a  divorce. 
Thanks  to  the  protection  of  her  brother,  for  whom  Queen 
Natalie  had  a  warm  regard,  and  whom  she  felt  bound  to 
protect  for  various  reasons  too  long  to  relate  here,  Draga 
had  become  lady-in-waiting  to  the  deposed  sovereign,  and 
had  very  soon  succeeded  in  making  herself  indispensable. 

She  was  exceedingly  clever,  insinuating,  possessed  a 
wonderful  charm,  and  was  eminently  attractive.  She  had 
a  brilliant  talent  for  music,  and  composed  verses  which 
were  taking  though  meretricious.  Apart  from  these 
advantages,  she  had  a  soft,  pleasant,  melodious  voice, 
and  appealed  to  the  senses  of  men  by  an  exceedingly 
sympathetic  manner  that  spoke  volumes  even  when  she 
said  nothing. 

Queen  Natalie  grew  to  like  her  extremely,  and  when 
her  son  came  to  see  her  she  often  appealed  to  her  lady- 
in-waiting  to  amuse  and  entertain  him.     Very  soon  the 


i68         The  Near  East  from  Within 

young  King,  still  a  boy  in  years  and  in  experience,  fell 
under  the  fascination  of  Madame  Maschin,  who  won 
his  confidence  and  assumed  the  attitude  of  an  entirely 
disinterested  friend.  She  spoke  with  Alexander,  dis- 
cussed with  him  the  difficulties  of  his  position,  advised 
him  what  to  do  or  say,  and  conquered  his  heart  by  show- 
ing him  plainly  that  she  loved  him  for  his  own  sake — a 
thing  that  the  poor  boy  had  always  yearned  for  but 
hitherto  never  found.  It  was  not  long  before  the  idea 
of  marrying  her  filled  the  King's  mind,  and  he  forthwith 
started  to  carry  out  his  desire,  without  reflecting  for  a 
moment  on  the  opposition  such  an  intention  on  his  part 
was  bound  to  meet  with  throughout  Servia. 

The  first  person  who  became  aware  of  the  state  of 
affairs  was  Queen  Natalie,  and  it  would  be  difficult  to 
describe  the  state  of  dismay  into  which  the  discovery 
plunged  her.  She  implored  her  son  to  desist  from  his 
intentions,  and  at  last,  finding  all  her  efforts  futile,  she 
appealed  to  King  Milan  himself  and  asked  him  to  con- 
vince their  son  that  he  had  no  right  so  to  brave  the  public 
opinion  of  the  whole  of  Europe. 

Milan  called  his  son  to  him  at  Vienna,  and  used  his 
best  eloquence  to  dissuade  him  from  the  dangerous  step 
he  was  about  to  take,  but  the  influence  of  Draga  Maschin 
proved  stronger  than  that  of  Milan.  Curtly  and  with 
boyish  arrogance  he  told  his  father  that  he  was  going 
to  please  himself,  and  that  he  felt  no  impulse  to  listen 
to  parents  who  had  never  troubled  about  his  existence. 

It  was  about  that  time  that  Draga  was  approached  by 


Draga  Declines  to  Intrigue  169 

a  mysterious  personage,  who  turned  out  to  be  one  of  the 
confidants  of  the  German  Emperor,  and  asked  whether, 
in  case  she  received  certain  necessary  help  to  secure  the 
fulfilment  of  her  heart's  desire,  she  would  use  her  influ- 
ence over  King  Alexander  to  further  Austrian  interests 
in  Servia.  Draga  was  an  ambitious  woman,  but  she  was 
a  patriot.  She  was  no  fool,  moreover,  and  realised  the 
true  import  of  the  proposal,  but  felt  afraid  to  say  so  for 
fear  of  a  trap.  She  therefore  treated  the  message  as  a 
joke.  Unfortunately  for  her,  the  fact  that  she  had 
received  the  mysterious  emissary  did  not  remain  secret, 
and  later  on  the  knowledge  was  used  against  her  by  the 
very  people  who  had  first  approached  her. 

When  Belgrade  heard  of  the  impending  marriage  of 
its  young  King  it  became  furious,  and  from  the  very 
outset  Draga  found  herself  placed  in  an  impossible 
position.  For  her  own  sake  it  was  regrettable  that  she 
made  matters  worse  by  affecting  a  ridiculously  overween- 
ing pride.  Her  very  fear  of  being  thought  familiar  led 
her  to  become  haughty  and  insolent  toward  people  she 
should  have  done  her  best  to  conciliate.  Instead  of 
allying  herself  courageously  with  one  party,  she  sought 
to  pander  to  all,  with  the  result  that  each  one  dubbed 
her  false  and  unreliable,  and  when  she  was  in  danger 
abandoned  her  to  her  fate  with  the  utmost  indifference. 

For  one  moment,  however,  the  efforts  of  Germany 
seemed  to  prevail,  and  Draga,  utterly  discredited  in  her 
own  country  and  made  the  object  of  bitter  and  un- 
warranted attacks,  in  pique  turned  her  thoughts  toward 


170         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Berlin,  whence  she  expected  help  and  protection  even 
more  than  from  Vienna.  She  invited  the  German 
Minister  to  come  to  the  Konak,  and  told  him  that  she 
was  ready  to  favour  the  development  of  Austrian  policy 
in  the  Balkan  Peninsula.  The  tragedy  of  it  all  was  that 
when  this  occurred  it  was  already  too  late  to  save  herself ; 
the  plot  was  in  action  which  doomed  the  Queen  and  her 
youthful  husband  to  a  cruel  death.  The  awful  culmina- 
tion is  too  well  known  and  its  details  are  too  harrowing 
to  bear  repetition,  but  there  are  certain  circumstances 
connected  with  it  which  have  long  remained  unknown 
to  the  general  public.  The  soul  of  the  conspiracy  was 
a  man  who  on  different  occasions  has  played  an  import- 
ant part  in  the  internal  troubles  which  during  the  last 
quarter  of  a  century  have  shaken  Servia,  and  who 
undoubtedly  is  to  this  day  one  of  its  leading  figures  and 
most  active  politicians.  That  man  was  at  different  times 
a  member  of  the  Government,  and  had  favoured  Russian 
interests  and  Russian  influence. 

Another  man  of  political  eminence  who  was  a  strong 
supporter  of  Russian  interests,  and  who  believed  the 
regeneration  of  his  country  could  only  be  accomplished 
under  the  shadow  of  the  Tsar,  was  M.  Pashitch,  of  whom 
much  has  been  heard  in  recent  years. 

M.  hated  King  Milan,  who  had  done  his  best 

to  get  rid  of  him  even  to  the  length  of  an  attempted 
assassination.  His  personal  views  in  regard  to  the 
marriage  of  the  young  King  were  tinged  by  the  fact 
that  he  knew  somewhat  of  the  early  life  of  Queen  Draga 


Opposition  to  Queen  Draga  171 

when  she  was  only  just  out  of  her  teens.  His  rage  knew 
no  bounds  when  he  found  out  that  the  Queen  was  making 
advances  to  the  Austrian  party  and  endeavouring  to  turn 
her  husband's  mind  against  Russia.  He  tried  to  induce 
M.  Pashitch  to  wink  at  a  plan  to  kidnap  the  Queen  and 
to  shut  her  up  in  an  asylum.  He  also  wanted  Draga 
to  adopt  the  principles  of  the  Russian  party.  The 
Queen,  knowing  the  man  and  that  he  knew  her  earlier 
career,  feared  that  this  invitation  contained  a  snare,  and 
elected  to  follow  the  advice  of  the  German  emissaries  who 
had  found  the  means  to  approach  her,  and,  further,  to 
display  all  her  powers  of  persuasion  to  induce  the  King 
to  fall  in  with  the  washes  of  the  Austrian  Minister. 

Such  conduct  was  the  last  straw.  The  politician  in 
question  had  hesitated  before  the  accomplishment  of  what 
he  felt  would  be  an  atrocious,  even  if,  as  he  thought, 
justifiable,  crime.  But  when  he  had  ascertained  of  a 
certainty  that  a  pact  of  alliance  between  the  Queen  and 
the  Austrian  envoy  had  been  concluded,  he  hesitated  no 
longer,  and  began  at  once  negotiations  wath  Prince  Peter 
Karageorgevitch,  the  pretender  to  the  throne  of  Servia, 
who  was  living  in  Geneva. 

Prince  Peter  declared  that  though  he  was  ready  to 
step  upon  the  throne  of  his  native  country  should  there 
be  any  expressed  wish  for  him  to  do  so,  he  would  not 
be  privy  to  any  enterprise  by  which  the  life  of  King 
Alexander  could  be  compromised.  He  was  asked  whether 
he  would  sanction  measures  of  force  in  case  these  became 
necessary,  and  is  reported  to  have  replied  '*  that  he  would 


172         The  Near  East  from  Within 

prefer  not  to  be  asked  that  question,  and  that  he  felt 
sure  his  friends  would  act  for  the  best." 

This  was  quite  sufficient.     When  M.  returned 

to  Belgrade  he  had  made  up  his  mind  what  to  do,  and 
he  acted  accordingly^ 

His  first  step  was  to  call  together  a  few  officers  of 
whose  feelings  and  opinions  he  felt  quite  sure,  and  before 
them  he  unfolded  a  plan  by  which  it  was  decided  to  carry 
away  the  Queen  and  to  lock  her  up  in  a  monastery, 
whence  she  would  never  emerge  aUve.  What  would 
happen  were  she  to  show  resistance  was  left  on  the  knees 
of  the  gods,  but  none  among  the  people  who  were  present 
doubted  what  the  outcome  would  be. 

On  June  10th  Queen  Draga  received  an  anonymous 
letter  by  which  she  was  implored  to"  do  her  best  to  restrain 
the  King  from  showing  himself  too  much  in  public  during 
the  days  that  were  coming  on,  as  well  as  to  keep  a  strict 
watch  upon  her  own  movements.  She  simply  laughed 
when  the  warning  was  conveyed  to  her.  Her  enemies, 
however,  neglected  no  detail.  The  sentinels  at  the  palace 
were  suborned,  and  keys  obtained  of  all  the  doors  leading 
to  the  private  apartments  of  the  sovereigns. 

The  King  and  Queen  had  already  retired  for  the  night 
when  the  conspirators  invaded  the  Konak.  Frightened 
at  the  sound  of  voices,  Draga  persuaded  her  husband  to 
seek  a  refuge  behind  a  curtain  in  their  bedroom.  There 
they  spent  over  three  hours  whilst  the  whole  of  the  palace 
was  being  searched.  Unfortunately,  a  slight  movement 
which  they  made  betrayed  their  presence.     But  for  this 


The  Royal  Murders  173 

circumstance  it  is  probable  that  they  would  have  remained 
undetected.  One  of  the  party  went  up  to  the  King,  who 
was  holding  the  Queen,  and  dragged  him  into  the  middle 
of  the  room.  As  the  unfortunate  monarch  wanted  to 
resist  and  shield  her  from  the  assassins,  they  stabbed  him 
to  the  heart,  and  then  threw  his  body  out  of  the  window 
into  the  street.  Draga  was  butchered,  for  no  other 
expression  can  be  used,  and  her  body  also  hurled  into 
the  street.  Later,  the  corpses  of  the  King  and  Queen 
were  found  by  monks,  who  buried  them  in  an  old  abbey 
where  the  Obrenovitch  dynasty  possessed  a  family  vault. 
The  next  day  Prince  Peter  Karageorgevitch  was 
elected  King. 


CHAPTER   XVI 

SERVIA   UNDER   KING   PETER 

THE  Karageorgevitch  dynasty,  after  a  lapse  of  some 
sixty  years,  came  back  to  the  throne  in  the  person 
of  King  Peter.  Certain  melodramatic  writers  have  said 
that  he  waded  through  blood  to  his  throne,  thereby 
inferring  that  Prince  Peter  was  privy  to  the  crime  which 
brought  the  crown  once  more  to  his  House.  Anyone  who 
knows  his  character  will  never  believe  this  accusation  for 
a  moment.  That  he  knew  a  revolution  was  in  coiu-se  is 
not  doubtful,  but  it  is  also  quite  certain  that  the  con- 
spirators did  not  tell  him  what  were  their  ultimate 
intentions.  When  the  news  of  the  assassination  of  King 
Alexander  was  brought  to  Prince  Peter  he  was  shocked 
beyond  expression,  and  it  is  certain  that  in  the  first 
moment  of  horror  he  declared  that  he  would  not  appear 
to  have  anything  to  do  with  such  an  atrocious  deed, 
preferring  to  renounce  any  pretensions  he  might  have 
to  the  crown  of  Servia. 

Happily  for  the  brave  little  nation.  Prince  Peter's 
brother.  Prince  Arsene  Karageorgevitch,  had  sufficient 
influence  to  persuade  Peter  to  take  the  throne.  Formerly 
Arsene  had  been  in  the  Russian  service  as  an  officer  in  a 

174 


Prosperity  Attends  the  Reign        175 

crack  regiment — the  Chevaliers  Gardes.  He  possessed  a 
most  determined  character,  and  he  it  was  who  put  the 
sword  into  the  hand  of  his  brother,  insisting  on  the  latter 
accepting  the  sovereignty  which  was  thus  unexpectedly 
thrust  upon  him.  He  asserted  that  the  Karageorgevitchs 
owed  it  as  a  duty  to  Servia  to  return  to  the  throne  at 
that  perilous  moment  of  Servian  history.  If  a  regular 
government  were  not  proclaimed  at  Belgrade,  Arsene 
argued  perceptively,  Austria  would  not  hesitate  to  occupy 
the  capital  and  to  invade  the  country.  He  so  strongly 
forced  his  decisive  arguments  upon  his  brother  that  a 
few  hours  later  Prince  Peter  was  proclaimed  King  of 
Servia. 

He  has  filled  this  difficult  position  with  great  tact  and 
undoubted  political  skill.  Very  soon  Servia  entered  into 
a  long  period  of  prosperity,  and  though  sceptics  used  to 
shake  their  heads  and  say  that  the  unusual  calm  could 
not  last  for  an  appreciable  period,  yet  it  is  certain  that 
the  country  began  to  breathe  more  easily  than  had  been 
the  case  for  many  years. 

The  strength  and  success  of  the  new  reign  and  the 
stability  which  seemed  to  be  in  a  fair  way  to  become 
established  aroused  first  the  astonishment  and  then  the 
uneasiness  of  German  diplomacy,  in  which  the  German 
Emperor  shared.  Nor  was  the  Teutonic  mind  soothed 
by  the  different  reports  received  from  Constantinople 
in  the  strain  that  ere  long  Servia  would  secure  the 
entire  sympathy  and  protection  of  Russia.  Out  of  this 
new  development  it  was  recognised  that  Servia  might 


176         The  Near  East  from  Within 

conceivably  develop  ambitions  in  regard  to  supremacy 
in  the  Balkans,  which  would  end  in  the  overthrow  of 
Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria,  at  that  time  still  the  Prince 
Ferdinand. 

At  this  juncture  Germany  saw  that  it  was  high  time 
to  take  steps  if  she  wished  not  to  abandon  the  Emperor's 
cherished  aim — the  annihilation  of  Russian  influence  in 
the  Near  East.  In  order  to  achieve  this  desirable  object 
it  was  vitally  necessary  to  enlist  the  co-operation  of  one 
of  the  small  Christian  kingdoms  of  the  peninsula. 
William  II.  did  not  quite  trust  Ferdinand  of  Coburg, 
whose  faculty  for  forgetting  promises  inspired  him  with 
deep  mistrust;  Roumania  was  already  entirely  German, 
or  at  least  he  supposed  that  she  was ;  Montenegro  was 
but  a  dwarf,  to  which  there  was  no  necessity  to  pay 
the  slightest  attention ;  whilst  Greece  could  always  be 
managed,  thanks  to  the  strong  German  sympathies  of 
the  Crown  Prince  and  to  the  influence  of  the  Crown 
Princess  Sophie,  who  was  the  sister  of  the  Emperor. 
Only  Servia  remained.  If  she  could  be  drawn  into  the 
German  Emperor's  political  constellation  she  might 
prove  of  infinite  value  in  assuring  the  humiliation  of 
Russia. 

But  it  was  not  so  easy.  There  were  patriots  in  Servia 
who  were  determined  not  to  allow  her  to  be  launched  on 
dangerous  seas,  and  who,  moreover,  were  popular  all  over 
the  country.  Among  them  was  M.  Pashitch,  of  whom 
I  have  already  spoken,  a  wise,  experienced,  clear-headed 
politician,  who  looked  beyond  the  success  of  the  moment, 


Prince  George  of  Servia  177 

and  who  was  the  leader  of  the  progressive  and  loyal 
party  in  Servia.  Associated  with  M.  Pashitch  was  M. 
Guentchitch  and  a  few  other  sincere  lovers  of  their 
country.  They  advocated  their  views  with  strength  and 
eloquence  before  King  Peter,  and  he  was  wise  enough 
to  follow  their  lead.  Thereby  he  more  firmly  established 
himself  and  his  dynasty  on  the  throne. 

Very  soon  the  Austrian  Minister  at  the  Court  of 
Belgrade  called  the  attention  of  his  Government  to 
matters  in  Servia  and  certain  developments  brought  about 
by  Servian  influence  in  Bulgaria.  Serious  alarm  was 
caused  among  the  private  councils  in  Vienna,  and  the 
Emperor  William  was  urgently  advised  of  the  course 
which  events  were  taking  at  Belgrade. 

It  soon  became  evident  to  the  few  who  were 
acquainted  with  the  inner  political  ramifications  that 
trusted  agents  of  Germany  were  at  work,  for  there  arose 
an  exponent  of  the  advantage  which  Servia  would  gain 
from  an  understanding  between  Vienna,  Berlin,  and 
Belgrade  in  the  person  of  the  Crown  Prince.  The  fact 
that  Prince  George  should  so  opportunely  come  forth  as 
the  champion  of  a  coalition  against  which  his  father  and 
the  more  progressive  statesmen  were  fighting  all  the  time 
was  significant,  as,  too,  it  was  that  Prince  George  should 
at  that  time  suddenly  recover  from  the  pecuniary  embar- 
rassments which  had  long  beset  him.  Things  had  not 
been  smooth  between  the  Crown  Prince  and  his  father 
owing  to  the  warped  ambitions  of  the  son,  and  because 
of  his  social  eccentricities. 

M 


178         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Prince  George  had  always  been  the  black  sheep  of  his 
family.  Of  an  active  and  boisterous  temperament,  he 
had,  ever  since  he  reached  the  years  of  discretion,  chafed 
under  the  strict  discipline  in  which  he  had  been  brought 
up,  and  rebelled  against  the  strong  hand  with  which  his 
father  ruled  his  family.  At  different  times  the  Crown 
Prince  had  tried  to  induce  the  King  to  initiate  him  into 
statecraft  and  to  grant  him  some  independence  without 
his  every  step  being  reported.  The  King,  who  was  in 
perpetual  fear  as  to  what  his  son  might  say  or  do  next, 
refused  to  accede  to  this  desire,  remembering  that  more 
than  once  he  had  had  occasion  to  reprimand  Prince 
George  for  his  unseemly  licence  of  language  and  of 
deportment.  King  Peter's  reproofs  had  been  received  in 
anything  but  a  grateful  mood,  and  very  soon  the  Crown 
Prince  set  himself  up  in  direct  opposition  to  his  father, 
and  began  to  gather  round  him  a  group  of  friends  deter- 
mined to  support  him  in  any  antagonism  he  might  adopt 
to  annoy  the  Sovereign  and  his  advisers. 

At  a  moment  when  this  state  of  things  became  acute 
the  Crown  Prince  was  approached  by  an  agent,  who  gave 
him  to  understand  that  in  case  of  a  coup  d^etat  of  some 
sort  he  might  count  on  the  protection  of  Germany  as 
well  as  that  of  Austria.  The  Crown  Prince  was  at  first 
flattered  though  surprised,  then  slightly  alarmed,  and  it 
was  whilst  under  the  apprehension  caused  by  that  last- 
mentioned  feeling  that  he  opened  his  heart  to  one  of  his 
friends,  who  happened  at  the  same  time  also  to  be  a  friend 
of  M.  Pashitch.    The  Ministry,  naturally,  quickly  learned 


The  Crown  Prince  is  Restive        179 

that  the  Crown  Prince  was  meditating  a  revolt  against 
the  authority  of  his  father,  and  that  he  planned  to  have 
Peter  locked  up  in  a  fortress  whilst  he  himself  was  pro- 
claimed King  of  Servia.  M.  Pashitch  was  thunderstruck, 
but  at  the  same  time  wise  enough  to  see  that  however 
plausible,  it  might  be  untrue,  and  even  if  it  were  every 
bit  as  serious  as  it  was  made  out,  he  could  not  make  any 
use  of  the  information,  as  at  that  time  he  did  not  possess 
a  shred  of  proof  justifying  an  accusation  of  conspiracy 
against  the  heir  to  the  throne.  In  this  perplexity  he  had 
recourse  to  the  ability  of  a  friend  who  more  than  once 
had  risen  to  the  needs  of  an  occasion. 

The  Crown  Prince  in  his  frequent  quarrels  with  his 
father  had  always  threatened  to  resign  his  rights  to  the 
crown  and  to  transfer  them  to  his  brother  Prince  Alex- 
ander, a  dashing,  clever,  energetic  young  fellow,  who 
favoured  Russian  interests  and  hated  Prince  Ferdinand 
of  Bulgaria.  He  had  always  been  his  father's  favourite, 
and  his  relations  with  the  Crown  Prince,  though  very 
affectionate,  had  not  been  altogether  smooth.  According 
to  the  ideas  of  the  particular  group  of  political  men 
represented  by  M.  Pashitch,  he  would  make  an  ideal 
ruler  to  follow  his  father  when  in  the  course  of  nature  the 
throne  should  be  vacant.  This  fact  led  to  the  conception 
of  the  idea  of  putting  him  in  his  elder  brother's  place. 

The  proposal,  however,  would  not  be  easy  to  carry 
out,  considering  that,  in  spite  of  his  many  extravagances. 
Prince  George  had  done  nothing  provable  that  would 
have  warranted  such  a  grave  measure  as  dispossessing  him 


i8o         The  Near  East  from  Within 

of  his  rights.  The  alternative,  therefore,  was  to  induce 
Prince  George  to  do  it  wiUingly.  The  Prince  fell  into 
the  snare  one  day  when  he  happened  to  be  in  a  particu- 
larly bad  temper,  and  was,  moreover,  enlivened  by 
champagne.  He  declared  with  violent  emphasis  that  he 
was  tired  of  being  treated  as  a  child,  and  called  for  paper 
and  ink  to  be  brought  to  him.  He  was  going,  he  said, 
to  write  at  once  to  his  father  and  to  the  Skupstchina, 
throwing  over  his  reversion  to  the  crown ;  that,  he 
boasted,  would  soon  bring  his  father  to  his  senses.  Pen 
and  paper  together  with  the  necessary  ink  were,  of 
course,  speedily  forthcoming,  and  he  vaingloriously  signed 
his  name  to  documents  whereby  he  became  a  private 
individual,  and  an  impecunious  one  at  that.  The  latter 
deficiency  was,  however,  rerfioved,  because  the  King  m- 
sisted  on  the  debts  of  Prince  George  being  paid  and  on 
his  being  granted  a  large  allowance. 

Later  on,  when  the  excitement  of  the  first  moment 
was  over,  Prince  George  bitterly  repented  the  hastiness 
which  had  made  him  yield  to  the  advice  of  interested 
people.  When  he  attempted  to  say  something  of  the 
kind,  he  was  told  that  there  was  no  going  back  on  a 
resolution  which  had  already  been  made  public,  and  that 
he  must  resign  himself  to  the  inevitable.  He  took  the 
thing  in  better  part  than  could  have  been  expected,  and, 
forgetting  the  ambitious  dreams  which  he  had  nursed, 
accepted  his  new  position  with  enough  good  humour  and 
philosophy  to  make  the  world  believe  that  he  had  really 
desired  to  be  free. 


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Alexander  as  Crown  Prince         i8i 

After  the  renunciation  of  Prince  George  matters 
became  at  once  easier  for  the  partisans  of  Russia.  Prince 
Alexander  submitted  readily  to  the  advice  of  M.  Pashitch  ; 
and  when  later  the  only  daughter  of  King  Peter  married 
a  member  of  the  Russian  Imperial  family,  it  seemed  that 
nothing  was  going  to  prevent  the  conclusion  of  an  offen- 
sive and  defensive  alUance  between  the  Romanoffs  and 
the  dynasty  of  Karageorgevitch. 

The  Emperor  William,  however,  was  not  altogether 
so  pleased  as  people  were  in  Servia.  He  saw  once  more 
his  cherished  plan  crumbling  to  the  ground,  and  the 
possibility  of  a  strong  Slav  kingdom  establishing  itself, 
with  the  help  and  imder  the  protection  of  Russia,  in 
opposition  to  weak,  tottering  Turkey  and  in  rivalry  to 
the  new  Bulgarian  monarchy.  It  became  necessary, 
therefore,  to  press  certain  events,  the  inner  purport  of 
which  I  knew,  and  which,  personally,  I  considered  to  be 
unwise  on  broad  lines  of  statesmanship.  Yet,  as  ever, 
the  German  Emperor  compelled  those  who  thought  as  I 
did  to  remain  silent,  and  he  sought  to  compel  Servia  to 
declare  itself  in  favour  either  of  Austria  or  of  Russia,  so 
as  to  be  sure  of  her  attitude  in  future  eventualities.  Con- 
currently, William  II.  threw  himself  resolutely  into  an 
anti-Russian  policy,  and  used  all  the  means  at  his  disposal 
to  persuade  the  Sultan,  and  especially  Enver  Pasha,  that 
the  time  had  come  when  Turkey  ought  to  avenge  herself 
for  her  past  defeats  and  shake  off  influences  which  had 
long  restricted  her  actions. 

When  the  threats  of  a  war  in  the  Balkans  shook  the 


i82         The  Near  East  from  Within 

equanimity  of  Europe,  the  Emperor,  instead  of  advising 
Turkey  to  yield,  encouraged  her  in  her  ideas  of  resistance, 
and  concurrently  excited  both  Servia  and  Bulgaria  against 
the  Turkish  Empire.  Whilst  the  Berlin  Cabinet  was  con- 
tinually repeating  that  it  wished  for  peace,  and  that  peace 
ought  to  be  imposed  on  the  beUigerent  parties,  I  know 
from  my  own  observation  and  the  hints  given  here  and 
there  that  the  Emperor  personally  was  advising  the  Bel- 
grade and  the  Sofia  Cabinets  not  to  renounce  one  iota 
of  their  pretensions,  and  at  the  same  time  insisting  on  the 
Sultan  refusing  any  compromise. 

As  we  know,  the  war  broke  out,  and  was  followed  by 
a  campaign  in  which  Bulgaria  fought  against  Servia  and 
Greece.  During  its  course  King  George  of  Greece  was 
murdered  at  Salonika,  and  Austria  began  showing  her 
cards,  allowing  the  world  to  guess  that  she  did  not  mean 
to  let  Servia  have  it  all  her  own  way,  and  that,  whatever 
happened,  she  would  stand  by  her  faithful  friend  Prince 
Ferdinand  of  Coburg. 

In  Servia  M.  Pashitch  was  never  idle  for  a  moment. 
He  saw  that  the  moment  had  come  when  the  basis  of  an 
alliance  betweeen  Russia  and  the  Balkan  States  might  be 
discussed.  He  sent  his  friend  M.  Guentchitch  to  Peters- 
burg, where  he  remained  five  months,  seeing  Ministers 
and  important  political  men,  and  working  steadfastly  for 
the  cause  of  Servia.  His  perfect  knowledge  of  the 
Russian  language  and  his  experience  in  politics  were 
of  extreme  use  to  him,  while  thanks  to  his  efforts, 
which    included    numerous    contributions    to    different 


King  Peter  in  Petersburg  183 

Russian  newspapers,  he  soon  succeeded  in  winning  a 
widespread  and  practical  sympathy  for  his  country. 

His  efforts  were  seconded  in  Belgrade  by  the  Russian 
Minister  there,  M.  Hartwig,  one  of  the  cleverest,  ablest 
diplomats  that  Russia  has  ever  possessed.  M.  Hartwig 
knew  the  East  through  and  through,  having  been  for 
something  like  ten  years  under  the  orders  of  Count 
Ignatieff  during  the  latter's  tenure  of  the  Constantinople 
Embassy.  He  hated  Austria,  and  always  declared  that 
until  the  Tsar  had  annihilated  her  as  a  dangerous  and 
intriguing  foe  Russia  would  never  be  able  to  develop  her 
vast  resources  in  peace.  He  worked  with  all  his  might 
to  secure  a  Russo-Servian  aUiance  as  a  precaution  against 
the  storm  which  he  repeatedly  warned  his  Government 
was  brewing  in  the  distance.  It  was  his  firm  belief  that 
the  world  had  reached  such  a  state  of  complexity  that 
nothing  short  of  a  bloody  conflict  could  make  things 
straight. 

M.  Hartwig  understood  better  than  most  the  subtle- 
ties and  sophisms  which  guided  poHcy  in  the  Near  East, 
and  to  counteract  the  effects  of  Austrian  duplicity  and 
German  intrigues  he  would  have  liked  his  countr\-  to 
stand  out  boldly  and  pose  as  the  champion  of  the  Slav. 
He  laid  the  basis  of  an  imderstanding,  the  details  of  which 
were  ratified  by  King  Peter  when  he  visited  Petersburg 
during  the  course  of  last  spring. 

When  the  peace  of  Bucharest  had  been  signed,  people 
began  to  breathe  freely  once  more,  and  to  indulge  in  hopes 
that  the  everlasting  Eastern  Question  would  at  last  be 


i84        The  Near  East  from  Within 

allowed  to  disappear  for  some  time  from  the  political 
horizon.  Austria  seemed  to  have  become  reconciled  to 
the  inevitable;  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria  appeared  intent 
upon  repairing  the  havoc'  produced  in  Bulgaria  by  the  last 
war ;  Turkey  had  won  back  Adrianople,  and  seemed  quite 
content  with  a  piece  of  good  luck  which  she  had  had  no 
right  to  expect.  All  seemed  fair  for  peace,  but  it  was  only 
in  seeming ;  the  everlasting  unknown  quantity  was  still  at 
work,  biding  its  time  to  engulf  men  and  nations  in  a 
bloody  eruption. 


CHAPTER    XVII 

A  Russian's  opinion 

ly  yl"  HART  WIG,  whom  I  have  mentioned  in  the 
•^^-■-*  previous  chapter,  was  certainly  one  of  the  ablest 
diplomats  Russia  ever  sent  abroad  to  watch  over  her 
interests,  owing  largely  to  his  remarkable  sense  of  in- 
tuition. Though  I  knew  him  very  well  and  was  in 
constant  intercourse  with  him  to  within  a  day  or  two 
of  his  death,  I  never  could  quite  make  out  the  extreme 
rapidity  with  which  he  came  to  conclusions  and — some- 
times before  anyone  else  had  had  time  to  realise  that  a 
thing  had  really  happened — prophesied  with  an  accuracy 
that  seldom  was  proved  wrong  what  would  follow  upon 
it.  He  was  an  ardent  patriot,  and  though  he  longed  for 
Russian  paramountcy  on  the  Bosphorus,  he  was  not  a 
fanatical  Slavophil.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  he  did  not 
care  for  Bulgarians  or  Servians ;  what  he  wanted  was 
that  Russia  should  acquire  an  undisputed  influence  in  the 
Balkan  Peninsula.  He  believed  firmly  in  the  mission  of 
Russia,  felt  convinced  that  her  destiny  lay  in  Constantin- 
ople, and  that  she  was  bound  sooner  or  later  to  get 
there.  He  wished  it  might  be  sooner.  His  hete  noire  was 
Austria ;  he  firmly  believed  that  she  represented  the  most 

185 


i86         The  Near  East  from  Within 

disquieting  element  in  Europe,  and  that  it  would  be 
her  diplomacy  which  would  entangle  Russia  in  a  war  in 
which  it  was  most  certain  that  Germany  would  interfere. 
M.  Hartwig  had  spent  some  years  in  Buda-Pesth,  and 
had  used  the  opportunity  which  was  thus  afforded  him 
to  study  with  the  utmost  care  and  attention  the  political 
men  and  the  military  preparations  which  were  being  made 
in  Austria.  He  distrusted  profoundly  the  various  states- 
men who  controlled  the  Austro-Hungarian  monarchy. 
He  knew  that  these  men,  blinded  as  they  were  by 
excessive  vanity,  would  not  hesitate  under  certain  circum- 
stances to  resort  to  subterfuge  of  the  grossest  kind  in 
order  to  prevent  friends  of  the  day  before  realising  the 
nature  of  the  attacks  which  were  being  prepared  against 
them. 

M.  Hartwig  had  continually  warned  his  Government 
that  something  was  being  premeditated  against  Russia 
by  the  two  allied  countries  of  Germany  and  Austria. 
His  intuition  caused  him  to  suspect  that  the  suddenly 
aggressive  policy  of  the  Austrian  Cabinet  in  regard  to 
the  Slav  movement  in  general  was  the  advance  guard  of 
a  stronger  determination.  M.  Hartwig  never  concealed 
his  behef  that  the  underlying  motive  was  the  determina- 
tion of  the  Emperor  Wilham  to  destroy  the  two  Powers 
— Russia  and  England — which  in  his  eyes  represented  the 
principal  obstacles  to  German  expansion. 

One  reason  for  the  uncanny  foresight  of  M.  Hartwig 
may  have  been  his  profound  knowledge  of  the  doings  of 
the  German  Emperor.    The  fact  that  he  was  so  strong  in 


M.  Hartwig  and  William  II.  187 

his  belief  that  WiUiam  TI.  was  not  what  he  seemed  may 
also  have  tinged  his  judgments,  for  the  antagonism 
amounted  almost  to  an  obsession.  In  justice  to  M.  Hart- 
wig  it  must  be  said  that  his  was  not  the  obstinacy  of  a 
man  arguing  on  nebulous  superficialities,  but  the  outcome 
of  a  serious  and  a  thorough  study  of  William  II.  Start- 
ing from  a  well-considered  deduction  that  upon  the 
German  Emperor  alone  depended  the  peace  of  the  world 
and  the  maintenance  of  the  staUis  quo  in  Europe, 
M.  Hartwig  told  me  that  he  had  made  a  collection  of 
the  Emperor's  various  speeches  in  the  hope  of  finding 
in  them  the  clue  to  that  complicated  and  mystical 
character  who,  as  M.  Hartwig  put  it,  was  capable  of  an 
unlimited  number  of  good  and  bad  actions ;  who,  though 
most  religious  in  his  words,  was  at  heart  the  greatest 
moral  Nihilist  that  has  ever  existed;  who,  beyond  his 
personal  glories  and  triumphs,  saw  nothing  and  cared  for 
nothing  save  the  material  aggrandisement  of  his  country. 
When  all  the  world  had  praised  tl\e  moderation  of  the 
Emperor  and  admired  his  efforts  in  the  cause  of  peace, 
and  when  it  had  been  even  proposed  to  grant  him  the 
Nobel  Prize,  M.  Hartwig  was  unmoved ;  he  protested, 
indeed,  against  what  he  called  "  this  utterly  false  appre- 
ciation of  the  disposition  of  William  II."  He  kept 
repeating  that  time  would  show  how  durable  were  the 
intentions  of  the  Emperor,  and  that  personally  he  did 
not  trust  them. 

We  had  more  than  one  discussion  on  this  subject,  dis- 
cussions which,  as  may  be  expected,  sometimes  bordered 


i88         The  Near  East  from  Within 

on  quarrels,  and  during  which  he  persisted  in  his  opinion. 
He  assured  me  that  all  matters  connected  with  German 
armaments,  though  apparently  well  known  everywhere, 
were  in  reality  buried  in  the  most  profound  mystery,  and 
that  for  every  soldier  and  for  every  gun  openly  avowed 
there  were  two  or  three  about  which  the  world  at  large 
knew  nothing  at  all. 

"  Germany  is  a  vast  camp,"  he  told  me  once  when  I 
passed  through  Belgrade  on  my  return  from  a  journey 
to  Sofia  about  which  I  shall  speak  presently,  "and  most 
likely  it  is  a  fortified  camp  into  the  bargain.  Its  storm- 
ing will  require  the  most  tremendous  sacrifices,  and  God 
knows  whether  even  these  will  prove  sufficient.  One 
does  not  with  impunity  train  a  nation  for  forty-five  years 
in  militarism  without  war  breaking  out  one  day.  When 
the  fruit  is  ripe  it  is  bound  to  drop  from  the  tree.  You 
believe  Germany  to  be  pacific,  in  which  I  do  not  blame 
you,  because  a  man  must  have  faith  in  his  own  country ; 
but  Germany  is  hypnotised.  A  kind  of  exasperation  of 
public  opinion  has  systematically  taken  place  in  your 
country,  with  the  result  that  she  is  quite  persuaded  that 
war  will  be  declared  upon  her  one  of  these  days,  and  so 
needs  ever  to  be  ready.  The  German  people  are  pacific 
by  nature,  I  know  it  well,  but  Germany  is  far  from  being 
pacific;  there  lies  the  whole  difference.  And  this  differ- 
ence, you  will  see,  will  bring  catastrophe." 

"I  cannot  believe  you,"  was  my  reply.  "I  know 
my  country  also.  I  am  bound  to  understand  her  feelings 
better  than  you  who  are  a  foreigner,  and  I  assure  you 


Rival  Patriots  189 

that  not  one  of  my  compatriots  desires  a  war,  especially 
a  war  with  you." 

"  Can  you  guarantee  me  the  feelings  of  your  Emperor 
on  that  subject?"  asked  M.  Hartwig. 

I  stopped  for  a  moment,  rather  at  the  remembrance 
of  M.  Hartwig 's  obsession  than  to  consider  a  reply,  and 
whilst  I  was  thus  hesitating  he  remarked  in  that  quick 
manner  of  his  which  was  so  impressive  : 

"  No,  you  cannot.  When  you  come  to  think  about  it 
seriously  you  are  not  at  all  sure  that  the  Emperor  wants 
to  preserve  peace  in  Europe." 

"It  is  you  who  are  mistaken,"  I  replied  with  heat. 
"  I  have  no  doubt  in  my  mind  as  to  the  desire  of  the 
Emperor  to  avoid  a  war.  What  made  me  pause  a  httle 
was  that  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  you  are  prejudiced." 

*'  No;  I  am  not  prejudiced,"  said  M.  Hartwig.  '*  I 
should  be  a  very  bad  servant  of  my  country  if  I  allowed 
prejudice  to  rule  my  judgment.  I  only  see  clearly  what 
others  will  not  look  upon.  Germany  must  expand,  must 
look  about  for  new  fields  for  the  activity  of  her  children. 
War  is  the  necessary  outlet.  Her  navy  has  now  some 
chance  of  success,  and  the  army  is  being  prepared.  The 
day  it  is  ready  your  Emperor  will  put  the  match  to  the 

fire." 

*' Surely  you  exaggerate,  or  else  you  are  under  a  bad 
influence  this  evening,"  I  remarked.  "It  is  idle  and 
unjust  to  believe  such  things  of  a  ruler  whose  words  tell 
such  a  different  tale." 

"  Ah,   well,"   repUed  M.  Hartwig  with  a  shrug  of 


iQo         The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  shoulders,  "  you  will  think  one  day  of  this  conversa- 
tion. Perhaps  I  shall  be  dead,  but  you  will  remember 
how  I  prophesied  to  you  that  we  tremble  to-day  on  the 
brink  of  great  events,  and  how  I  said  that  Germany  as 
she  stands  to-day  is  a  danger  not  only  to  the  peace,  but 
also  to  the  civilisation  of  the  world." 

M.  Hartwig  did  not  finish  with  that  remark. 

"  You  may  ask  me,"  he  continued,  "what  makes  me 
take  such  a  gloomy  view  of  the  situation,  but  here  in 
Belgrade,  as  all  over  the  Balkan  Peninsula,  we  see  things 
perhaps  more  clearly  than  anywhere  else.  We  all  know 
that  the  slightest  incident  in  these  regions  may  bring 
about  events  of  unusual  magnitude,  and  recently  the 
intrigues  of  Germany  among  the  Slav  populations  of  this 
country  have  assumed  quite  threatening  proportions,  as 
I  have  had  the  opportunity  to  see  for  myself." 

"But  why?"  I  asked. 

"Because,"  came  the  immediate  reply,  "Germany 
covets  the  Suez  Canal  and  wants,  too,  to  march  eastward. 
She  can  only  do  so  either  by  the  help  of  Turkey  and  the 
connivance  of  Balkania,  or  by  crushing  both,  and  this 
latter  by  the  indirect  means  of  Turkey  and  the  Balkan 
States  taking  arms  against  each  other.  Anj^  Balkan 
conflict,  all  Europe  knows,  will  involve  Russia ;  it  is  that 
for  which  your  Emperor  is  waiting." 

"  But  your  suspicions  cannot  be  correct,"  I  said. 
"William  II.  has  always  done  all  that  he  could  to  main- 
tain peace.  There  is  absolutely  no  ground  for  your 
assertion  that  the  Emperor  has  changed  so  utterly." 


Death  of  M.  Hartwig  191 

"You  forget  one  thing,"  said  M.  Hartwig.  "You 
forget  the  relations  which  now  exist  between  the  Emperor 
and  the  Crown  Prince.  Remember  that  and  you  have  the 
key  to  many  a  riddle  which  will  yet  puzzle  the  world.  So 
long  as  the  Emperor  was  sole  master  of  the  situation  he 
could  still  be  relied  upon  to  a  certain  extent;  but  now 
that  he  sees  that  his  son  has  won  for  himself  a  considerable 
amount  of  popularity  among  the  military  party  he  finds 
his  hand  forced,  and  inevitably  he  will  be  obliged  to  make 
war.  The  friends  of  the  Crown  Prince  are  accusing  the 
Sovereign  of  cowardice,  and  already  say  that  he  is  afraid 
of  a  war." 

I  jumped  up  on  hearing  this  remark,  vividly  recalling 
the  words  which  a  few  weeks  before  had  been  used  by 
the  King  of  Roumania.  This  similarity  of  opinion  in 
two  men  so  opposed  to  each  other,  and  each  in  his  way 
so  remarkable,  impressed  me  deeply. 

I  left  Belgrade  the  next  day,  and  never  saw  M. 
Hartwig  again.  He  died  quite  suddenly  a  few  weeks 
later,  died  in  the  house  of  his  Austrian  colleague  with 
whom  he  had  been  discussing  several  important  pohtical 
questions. 

Many  dark  rumours  were  put  into  circulation  con- 
cerning his  unexpected  and  tragic  end.  M.  Hartwig  was 
certainly  a  man  who  saw  things  with  a  much  clearer  vision 
than  the  majority  of  people,  and  his  death  at  the  very 
moment  when  his  services  might  have  been  of  inestimable 
value  to  his  country  added  to  the  difficulties  of  the  time. 
His  vast  knowledge  of  Eastern  affairs,  his  experience  of 


192        The  Near  East  from  Within 

politics  in  general,  and  his  strong  sympathies  for  the 
English  alliance,  which  were  the  more  curious  that  he 
had  never  cared  for  England  as  a  nation,  would  have  been 
most  useful  to  M.  Sazonov.  Fate  interfered,  and  when 
he  died  Germany  lost  an  adversary  who  was  the  more 
dangerous  in  that  he  never  allowed  himself  to  be  carried 
away  by  passion,  but  judged  of  things  and  worked  at 
them  with  the  utmost  coolness  and  presence  of  mind. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

RIVAL   INFLUENCES   IN   GREECE 

FEW  of  the  nations  of  the  Near  East  have  been  free 
from  the  overtures  of  German  diplomacy,  and  Greece 
is  no  exception.  Owing  to  certain  circumstances  herein- 
after made  plain,  Athens  seemed  to  give  promise  of  fruit 
in  the  shape  of  a  definite  and  practical  friendliness  be- 
tween the  Court  of  Greece  and  that  of  William  II.  How 
diplomacy  fared,  and  to  what  extent  the  personal  feelings 
of  members  of  the  Royal  Family  of  Greece  entered  into 
the  relationship  between  their  country  and  the  German 
Empire,  forms  a  significant  page  of  European  history. 

In  certain  other  directions  in  Mid-Europe  the  net  re- 
sult of  sedulous  diplomatic  courting  on  the  part  of  Berlin 
was  a  harvest  of  uncertainties  and  failures.  Even  where 
inducements  had  been  pictured  in  alluring  colours,  and  a 
measure  of  response  had  been  felt,  the  proneness  of 
Balkan  politicians  to  consider  expediency  a  first  law  made 
even  the  most  solemn  assurances  unstable,  and  nothing 
short  of  a  definitely  ratified  alliance  was  worth  trusting. 
Of  such  words  of  the  wind  Wilham  II.  was  getting  weary 
— Servia  flouted  him ;  Roumania  dallied  with  him ;  in 
Turkey,  though  he  felt  more  sure,  yet  he  recognised  the 

N  193 


194         The  Near  East  from  Within 

ruling  passion  for  craft  might  undermine  his  position  at 
any  time ;  Bulgaria  seemed  a  land  of  promise,  but  her 
ambitions  were  inimical  to  Turkey,  and  thus  stultified  the 
eflPect  of  diplomatic  overtures  if  Turkey  were  to  be  kept 
friendly. 

The  Balkan  problem  became  more  intricate  for 
Germany  every  year,  and  knowing  as  much  as  I  do  of  the 
inner  workings  of  political  dealings  in  the  Near  East,  it 
was  forced  upon  me,  in  the  face  of  the  situation  as  pre- 
sented above,  that  perilous  times  were  ahead,  and  some- 
thing more  tangible  inust  be  secured  in  the  way  of  an 
understanding  with  one  of  the  Balkan  League  to  enable 
Germany  to  emerge  without  damaged  prestige  from  the 
network  which  had  been  woven  during  the  last  quarter 
of  a  century. 

The  fact  that  William  II.  was  bound  by  ties  of 
relationship  to  the  reigning  house  of  Greece  led  him  to 
direct  the  course  of  diplomacy  to  a  friendly  understand- 
ing. It  was  true  that  King  George  of  Greece  had  been 
a  Dane,  and  therefore  hostile  in  spirit  to  German  expan- 
sion, but  on  the  other  hand  a  certain  friendliness  existed 
between  the  two  rulers.  The  King  of  the  Hellenes, 
indeed,  had  sent  his  eldest  son  to  be  educated  and  trained 
at  a  German  mihtary  school,  a  period  which  came  within 
the  lifetime  of  the  Emperor  William  I.  From  the 
academy  the  j^oung  Prince  had  become  attached  to  a 
Prussian  regiment  of  the  Guards,  and  whilst  he  was  drill- 
ing his  soldiers  on  the  exercise  ground  at  Potsdam  the 
heir  to  the  Greek  throne  met  and  fell  in  love  with  pretty 


Marriage  of  Prince  Constantin       195 

Princess  Sophie,  the  second  youngest  daughter  of  the 
then  Crown  Prince  and  of  his  consort  the  Princess  Vic- 
toria. His  affection  was  reciprocated,  and  though  the 
father  of  the  young  lady,  the  Emperor  Frederick  III., 
died  before  the  engagement  of  the  lovers  could  be 
announced,  the  course  of  their  affection  ran  smoothly, 
and  they  were  married  at  Athens  about  a  year  after  the 
death  of  the  Emperor,  rather  to  the  dismay  of  Queen 
Olga  of  Greece,  who  did  not  like  the  idea  of  having  a 
Protestant  for  her  daughter-in-law.  This  difficulty, 
however,  was  easily  surmounted  when  the  new  Crown 
Princess,  a  few  months  after  her  marriage,  entered  the 
Greek  Church,  a  proceeding  which  led  to  a  quarrel 
between  her  and  her  elder  brother,  William  II.  For 
many  years  brother  and  sister  did  not  meet,  and  it  was 
only  at  the  deathbed  of  their  mother,  the  Empress 
Frederick,  that  a  reconciliation  between  them  took  place  ; 
even  then  it  lacked  sincerity. 

The  Princess  Sophie  did  not  trouble  very  much  about 
this  estrangement.  She  is  a  very  clever  woman,  gifted 
with  singular  discernment,  who  has  all  the  ambition  of 
her  mother,  and  certainly  more  tact.  During  the  war 
which  Greece  fought  with  Turkey  in  the  latter  years  of 
the  last  century  she  was  the  only  member  of  the  Royal 
Family  who  had  the  courage  to  say  that  it  was  bound 
to  end  in  disaster,  and  the  only  person  who  urged  the 
King,  her  father-in-law,  to  conclude  peace  before  his 
army  had  been  entirely  annihilated.  This  at  first  made 
her  many  enemies,  and  as  the  Crown  Prince  was  held 


196         The  Near  East  from  Within 

responsible  for  the  defeat  of  the  Greek  army,  he  had 
perforce  to  leave  his  native  shores  for  a  considerable  time, 
together  with  his  family.  It  was  during  his  compulsory 
retirement  at  Cronberg,  the  castle  which  the  Empress 
Frederick  had  built  in  the  Taunus  Mountains,  that  the 
German  Emperor  began  to  plant  the  first  seeds  of  the 
intimacy  which  was  soon  to  reunite  him  to  his  sister  and 
brother-in-law. 

Prince  Constantin  w^as  at  that  time  still  a  young  man. 
His  education  had  imbued  him  with  strong  German 
sympathies  and  with  the  desire  to  bring  German  influence 
and  German  parliamentary  principles  into  Greece.  He 
was  a  fine  fellow,  perhaps  too  heavy  in  appearance,  but 
handsome,  and  of  pleasant  manners  and  deportment.  He 
had  been  at  one  time  very  unpopular  in  his  own  country, 
and  was  haunted  by  the  desire  to  correct  the  errors  which 
arose  from  his  acceptance  of  the  supreme  command  of 
the  Greek  army  without  having  been  sufficiently  experi- 
enced for  the  task.  It  was  not  a  disaster  to  him,  therefore, 
when  he  saw  Greece  entangled  in  another  war,  for  during 
its  course  he  hoped  he  would  be  able  to  win  for  himself 
the  laurels  for  which  he  longed.  That  hope  had  been 
fulfilled,  and  he  believed  that  it  was  mainly  because  he 
had  followed  the  advice  of  his  brother-in-law.  But  as 
the  military  reputation  of  the  Crown  Prince  grew,  his 
relations  with  his  own  father  became  more  and  more 
strained  on  account — so,  at  least,  it  was  whispered — of 
strong  political  differences  which  had  arisen  between 
them.    The  King  was  authoritative  in  his  family  and  ruled 


King  George  of  Greece  197 

it  with  an  iron  hand.  In  that  respect  he  had  inherited 
the  character  of  his  parents,  the  late  King  and  Queen  of 
Denmark.  Even  the  Queen,  good  and  sweet  as  she  was, 
failed  to  smooth  over  the  differences  which  crept  up  con- 
tinually and  rendered  life  at  the  Court  of  Athens  anything 
but  pleasant.  King  George,  who  at  one  time  felt  great 
sympathy  with  the  Emperor  William  II.,  now  began  to 
mistrust  him,  and  did  not  look  with  favour  upon  his  son's 
intimate  friendship  with  him.  King  George  of  Greece 
was  a  wise  and  a  cautious  man,  a  sovereign  with  ambition, 
tempered,  however,  with  extreme  prudence.  Owing  in 
a  large  measure  to  his  personal  merits,  added  to  his  long 
experience  as  a  monarch,  he  had  acquired  quite  an  excep- 
tional position  amidst  the  other  crowned  heads  of  Europe, 
and  his  advice  was  not  infrequently  sought  in  times  of 
diflSculty  by  his  brother  rulers. 

He  had  a  great  abhorrence  for  what  he  called  ' '  a 
policy  based  on  adventure,"  and,  without  having  been 
taken  into  the  confidence  of  the  German  Emperor,  he 
suspected  him  of  harbouring  certain  sinister  designs 
against  two  European  Powers  closely  allied  to  the  Royal 
House  of  Greece,  and  furthermore  feared  that  the  Crown 
Prince  had  had  his  ambitions  fired  through  the  same 
agency.  In  consequence  of  an  ancient  prophecy  which 
was  popular  among  the  Greek  population  of  the  Levant, 
that  when  a  King  called  Constantin,  married  to  a  Queen 
called  Sophie,  should  reign  at  Athens  the  Cathedral  of 
St.  Sophia  would  once  more  become  a  Christian  church. 
King  George  had  strong  apprehensions  that  the  Crown 


198         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Prince — at  the  suggestion  of  Germany — would  attempt 
to  overthrow  the  Sultan  by  force  of  arms,  and  have  him- 
self proclaimed  Emperor  of  Byzance.  His  daughter-in- 
law,  the  Crown  Princess,  shared  the  opinion  of  King 
George  as  to  the  foolishness  of  such  visions,  and  she,  too, 
would  have  preferred  that  her  brother,  William  II., 
should  not  interfere  with  what,  after  all,  did  not  concern 
him.  As  for  Queen  Olga,  though  her  relations  with  the 
King  had  also  become  rather  strained  during  the  declining 
years  of  the  King's  life,  she  shared  the  fears  of  her 
husband.  The  Crown  Prince  alone  kept  up  a  regular 
correspondence  with  his  brother-in-law.  Personally,  from 
certain  private  evidence  which  I  cannot  divulge,  I  am 
satisfied  that  Constantin  most  certainly  entered  heart  and 
soul  into  the  plans  of  the  Emperor  William  II.  in  the 
direction  of  Turkey. 

Prince  Constantin,  however,  did  not  remain  for  long 
under  the  influence  of  these  illusions,  but  when  the  fatal 
shot  fired  at  his  father  in  Salonika  had  raised  him  to  the 
throne  of  the  Hellenes,  he  quickly  discovered  the  impos- 
sibility of  the  stories  which  he  had  been  told  by  his 
brother-in-law.  When  responsibility  of  government  had 
been  thrust  on  hiin  he  realised  that  his  first  duty  consisted 
in  preserving  the  patrimony  of  his  own  children.  The 
indulgence  of  the  reader  must  be  asked,  too,  in  regard 
to  an  incident  which  was  currently  believed  by  the  greater 
number  of  the  few  political  agents  who  learned  of  it.  I 
have  no  absolute  proof,  but,  as  I  say,  it  is  certain  that 
something  extraordinary  had  taken  place  to  cause  the 


u 

o 


8 
o 


u 

o 


5 

S 

u 


Murder  of  King  George  199 

young  King  so  to  change  his  attitude,  and  that  "some- 
thing "  was  credited  by  the  few  to  whom  I  refer  as  being 
in  the  position  to  know  to  be  a  strange  letter  which  had 
reached  him  almost  on  the  eve  of  his  father's  murder. 
This  communication  told  him  in  so  many  words  that  a 
great  change  was  impending,  and  that  very  soon  he  would 
be  able  to  show  of  what  stuff  he  was  made.  In  spite  of 
its  impertinent  and  offensive  tone,  this  cursory  missive 
had  a  ring  of  truth  in  it  and  had  painfully  jarred  on  the 
nerves  of  the  then  Crown  Prince.  Two  days  later  the 
King  was  murdered  in  broad  daylight  in  one  of  the  most 
frequented  streets  of  Salonika. 

Shortly  after  the  death  of  King  George  of  Greece  I 
was  passing  through  Athens,  and  took  occasion  to  call 
upon  King  Constantin.  A  reminder  that  I  had  known 
him  in  Berlin  when  he  was  a  boy  secured  my  admission. 
I  found  him  very  little  changed  on  the  whole,  and  he 
received  me  most  warmly,  talking  about  the  time  when 
he  had  been  in  BerHn  before  his  marriage.  He  asked  me 
numerous  questions  concerning  various  of  his  friends  of 
those  early  days,  and  seemed  interested  to  learn  that  most 
of  them  were  still  alive  and  well.  Then  the  conversation 
turned  on  recent  events,  especially  on  the  assassination  of 
the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand  and  his  consort.  To  my 
surprise  the  King  did  not  accept  my  remark  that  the 
murderer  was  a  Servian,  who  had  been  actuated  simply 
by  a  blind  hatred  of  Austria  and  of  her  future  Emperor. 
On  the  contrary,  he  remarked  that  the  existence  of  such 
a  plot  had  been  proved  in  quite  an  irrefutable  manner. 


200         The  Near  East  from  Within 

How,  he  did  not  enlighten  me,  but  contented  himself  by 
remarking  :  "  I  don't  Hke  saying  too  much,  and  I  have 
not  seen  the  men  who  awaited  the  arrival  of  the  auto- 
mobile in  which  the  Archduke  rode,  but  I  feel  certain 
that  there  exists  a  hnk  between  them  and  the  misguided 
Greek  who  fired  at  my  poor  father.  More  than  that,  I 
would  not  be  surprised  to  find  that  the  same  person  was 
initially  responsible  for  both  crimes." 

This  assertion  of  the  young  King  struck  me  as  abso- 
lutely uncanny.  Who.  I  asked  myself,  could  have  an 
interest  in  the  murder  of  these  people.?  To  whom  did 
they  constitute  an  obstacle.? 

I  could  find  no  reply. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

THE  FAILURE  OF  GERMAN  INTRIGUE  IN   MONTENEGRO 

THE  aged  King  Nicholas  of  Montenegro  has  never 
looked  leniently  upon  German  intrigue,  despite 
strong  inducements.  Not  even  would  he  consent  to 
promise  an  attitude  of  neutrality  —  he  refused  to  be 
tied  by  a  single  thread  which  might  hamper  his  inde- 
pendence. The  influence  exercised  by  the  aged  King 
over  the  Slav  races  was  in  itself  an  important  factor  in 
all  matters  connected  with  the  development  of  that  great 
Slav  Empire  about  which  so  many  people  had  dreamed 
in  Russia  as  well  as  all  over  the  world.  On  the  other 
hand,  Germany  had  long  cherished  the  desire  to  stand 
forth  as  the  protector  of  the  Slavs,  either  on  her  own 
account  or  indirectly  through  Austria.  The  Emperor 
William  knew  that  under  existing  conditions  the  other 
Powers  would  not  allow  him  to  exercise  dominance  in 
the  Balkans,  and  he  soon  found  out  that  Austria  was  not 
strong  enough  to  be  able  to  dictate  to  the  Balkan  States. 
It  therefore  became  desirable  to  win  over  one  or  other 
of  the  small  Sovereigns  whom  perpetual  rivalries  made 
eager  to  attain  a  position  whence  they  could  afford  to  do 
without  their  neighbours.    From  this  standpoint  German 

201 


202         The  Near  East  from  Within 

diplomacy  had  its  attention  focused  upon  Montenegro 
for  a  long  time.  The  German  Emperor  knew  very  well 
that  King  Nicholas  was  devoted  to  Russia,  and  moreover 
that,  with  two  of  his  daughters  married  to  Russian 
Grand  Dukes,  it  was  but  natural  he  should  support  to 
the  extent  of  his  limited  resources  the  Russian  cause  in 
Constantinople.  To  counterbalance  these  sympathies  of 
Nicholas  I.,  German  agents  sought  to  capture  the  interest 
of  the  Crown  Prince  Danilo,  who,  because  he  had  spent 
some  time  in  Germany  on  various  occasions,  was  supposed 
to  nurse  a  great  admiration  for  German  ways  in  general 
and  the  German  army  in  particular.  Whenever  Prince 
Danilo  visited  Berlin  the  Emperor  WiUiam  always  invited 
him  to  dinner  or  to  lunch,  and  treated  him  with  particular 
friendliness.  He  even  went  so  far  as  to  find  him  a  wife, 
and  it  was  through  his  direct  influence  and  co-operation 
that  the  marriage  of  the  heir  to  the  Montenegrin  throne 
with  the  Duchess  Jutta  of  Mecklenburg-Strelitz  was 
arranged.  Duchess  Jutta  was  clever,  and  she  made  her- 
self Hked  in  her  new  country,  and  probably  would  have 
become  popular  had  she  only  given  her  husband  an  heir, 
but  her  marriage  remained  childless. 

With  the  arrival  of  Duchess  Jutta  at  Cetinje  intrigue 
entered  the  life  of  the  Court  and  proved  a  source  of  much 
anxiety  to  those  who,  from  behind  the  scenes,  watched 
the  development  of  the  plots.  In  order  more  fully  to 
understand  these  intrigues  it  will  be  helpful  to  look  into 
the  reign  of  Nicholas  I.  of  Montenegro  and  to  note 
the  success  of  his  long  kingship. 


A  Sketch  of  Nicholas  I.  203 

The  King  is  certainly  an  exceedingly  clever  sovereign. 
He  transformed  a  strip  of  land  into  a  kingdom  which, 
small  as  it  is,  commands  general  respect,  partly  through 
its  geographical  position,  and  partly  through  the  person- 
ality of  its  ruler.  At  the  time  he  was  elected  Prince  a 
good  many  people  looked  upon  the  Montenegrins  as  an 
almost  savage  tribe.  Since  that  day  Montenegro  has 
won  for  itself  name  and  fame  through  the  heroic  conduct 
of  its  children  during  the  continual  wars  with  Turkey 
in  which  it  took  such  a  prominent  part.  After  the 
campaign  of  1877  Montenegro  became  the  object  of 
flattery  on  the  part  of  Turkey,  who  saw  in  her  an  obstacle 
to  Servian  ambitions,  as  well  as  a  country  whose  progress 
might  checkmate  the  ambitions  of  Bulgaria,  which  was 
then  beginning  its  career  as  an  independent  State. 
Prince  Nicholas  was  a  man  in  the  prime  of  life,  with  a 
splendid  physique  and  a  prepossessing  appearance.  He 
had  won  for  himself  the  reputation  of  being  a  faithful 
friend  and  a  loyal  adversary,  and  had  contrived  to  appeal 
to  the  feelings  and  to  the  sympathies  of  the  Tsar  Alex- 
ander III.,  who  once  had  gone  so  far  as  to  declare  publicly 
that  he  considered  him  as  the  only  true  and  sincere  friend 
that  Russia  possessed.  The  words  made  a  great  stir  at 
the  time,  but  they  gave  to  Prince  Nicholas  a  very  strong 
position  in  the  Balkans,  where  one  grew  very  quickly  to 
consider  him  as  the  depository  of  the  political  secrets  of 
Russia  and  of  her  plans  concerning  the  future  of  the  Slav 
cause  in  Europe.  He  was  clever  enough  to  make  the 
most,  and  perhaps  even  more  than  was  necessary,  of  the 


204         The  Near  East  from  Within 

legend  that,  in  consequence,  gradually  arose  around  his 
name;  and  as  a  good  father,  careful  of  the  future  of  his 
numerous  family,  he  applied  himself  to  the  task  of  finding 
suitable  husbands  for  his  six  daughters,  all  of  whom  were 
educated  in  Petersburg  at  the  Convent  of  Smolna,  an 
establishment  under  the  immediate  protection  of  the 
Empress.  The  young  ladies  remained  at  the  convent  for 
a  year  or  two  after  their  education  had  been  completed, 
and  went  out  a  good  deal  into  society,  where  they  soon 
made  themselves  extremely  popular.  The  eldest  two 
Montenegrin  princesses  captivated  two  Russian  princes, 
the  Grand  Duke  Peter  Nicolaievitch  and  Duke  George 
of  Leuchtenberg,  and  when  the  weddings  took  place  the 
Tsar  gave  the  brides  their  trousseaux — and  also  a  dowry, 
if  all  that  one  hears  is  true.  Prince  (his  domain  was  not 
then  a  kingdom)  Nicholas  went  to  Russia  for  the 
weddings,  and  was  made  a  great  fuss  of. 

Since  the  marriage  of  his  daughters  he  has  visited  the 
Russian  capital  many  times,  and  has  used  the  occasions 
to  further  the  interests  of  his  little  kingdom,  and  he 
finally  had  the  cleverness  to  win  from  the  Tsar  the  guaran- 
tee of  a  regular  subsidy,  which  is  being  paid  to  him  to 
the  present  day.  Montenegro  was  a  young  country,  and 
a  poor  one  into  the  bargain ;  therefore  no  one  objected 
to  the  generosity  exercised  by  the  Tsar  in  regard  to  a 
man  who  had  given  him  such  proofs  of  his  devotion. 
There  were  some  who  had  the  audacity  to  ask  in  what 
these  proofs  consisted,  but  any  who  ventured  to  make 
such  unpleasant  remarks  were  very  soon  cowed,  and  the 


Royal  Matchmaking  205 

devotion  of  Montenegro  and  its  ruler  to  the  Russian  cause 
became  one  of  those  estabHshed  legends  that  it  would 
have  been  dangerous  to  deny  or  even  not  to  acknowledge. 
It  was  proof  of  the  supreme  ability  of  Prince  Nicholas  that 
he  could  so  persuade  the  world,  and  in  this,  as  in  every- 
thing else,  he  showed  himself  a  consummate  diplomat. 
Each  time  he  went  to  Russia  he  returned  laden  with 
promises,  whilst  he  himself  kept  silent  as  the  Sphinx  in 
the  Egyptian  desert. 

His  fifth  daughter  married  Francis  Joseph,  Prince  of 
Battenberg,  and  in  that  way  he  assured  himself  of  the 
sympathies  of  Queen  Victoria,  whose  youngest  daughter, 
the  Princess  Beatrice,  was  wedded  to  another  Battenberg 
brother ;  and  at  last  he  achieved  his  greatest  triumph  in 
the  matrimonial  hne  when  the  dark-eyed  Princess  Helene 
was  united  to  the  Prince  of  Naples,  the  only  son  of 
King  Humbert  of  Italy  and  of  his  lovely  consort  Queen 
Margherita,  "  the  Pearl  of  Savoy  "  as  she  was  called  in 
her  own  country. 

It  was  about  the  time  of  Helene 's  marriage  that  the 
Emperor  William  II.  sought  the  friendship  of  Prince 
Nicholas.  A  little  known  but  perfectly  true  circumstance 
is  that  the  German  Emperor  suggested  this  alliance  to 
the  King  of  Italy.  Owing  to  the  peculiar  relationship 
always  existing  between  the  Italian  Royal  Family  and 
the  Vatican,  it  was  impossible  to  think  of  a  Catholic  wife 
for  the  heir  to  the  throne.  Bearing  in  mind  how  con- 
siderably such  a  fact  narrowed  the  circle  of  eligible 
princesses,    William    II.    suggested    to    Humbert    that 


2o6         The  Near  East  from  Within 

among  the  splendidly  beautiful  daughters  of  Nicholas  of 
Montenegro  a  suitable  consort  might  be  found. 

Owing  to  this  excellent  advice  the  Prince  of  Naples 
journeyed  to  Cetinje,  with  the  happy  result  that  the 
betrothal  to  Helene  was  soon  announced.  In  this  act 
the  German  Emperor  knew  very  well  what  he  was  about 
and  that  nothing  but  advantage  to  everybody  could 
come  out  of  his  hint.  He  had,  moreover,  taken  care  to 
keep  himself  well  informed  as  to  the  personal  charms  and 
qualities  of  the  young  princesses,  and  when  after  his 
marriage  Prince  Victor  Emmanuel  was  found  to  be 
ardently  in  love  with  his  wife,  William  II.  congratulated 
himself  on  the  foresight  that  had  persuaded  him  to  have 
a  hand  in  the  happiness  of  one  of  his  friends  and  at  the 
same  time  assured  him  of  the  gratitude  of  Nicholas  of 
Montenegro,  whom  he  took  care  to  inform  that  the  match 
had  been  partly  his  work. 

The  Berlin  Court  and  the  Quirinal  had  long  been  upon 
excellent  terms  with  each  other,  and  in  consequence 
William  II.  felt  sure  of  being  able  to  exercise  through 
its  medium  some  influence  on  the  Prince  of  Montenegro 
in  order  to  incline  him  to  favour  the  plans  of  Germany. 

There  came  a  moment  when  the  Emperor  William  II. 
ventured  to  appeal  to  the  Quirinal  and  to  ask  the  young 
King  (not  long  after  his  accession)  whether,  if  such  came 
about,  he  would  undertake  the  office  of  mediator  in 
settling  the  terms  of  a  defensive  and  offensive  alliance 
between  Germany  and  Montenegro.  Victor  Emmanuel 
declined  under  the  pretext  that  his  father-in-law  was  a 


The  Prince  and  His  People  207 

man  of  such  authoritative  character  that  he  would  never 
dare  suggest  to  him  anything  in  general,  and  especially 
anything  in  which  politics  were  concerned.  This  suave 
reply  did  not  discourage  William  II.,  who  then  under- 
took to  do  his  work  alone,  and  sent  me  to  Cetinje  with 
secret  instructions  to  sound  the  Prince  (as  he  still  was 
at  that  time)  and  to  find  out  what  were  his  views  upon 
the  subject. 

I  duly  reached  the  Montenegrin  capital,  and  almost 
immediately  after  my  arrival  was  received  by  Prince 
Nicholas  in  the  simple  manner  in  which  he  welcomed  all 
his  visitors.  The  palace,  as  it  was  pompously  called, 
reminded  one  rather  of  the  country  house  of  a  simple 
gentleman  of  moderate  means  in  Europe;  the  only 
characteristic  thing  about  the  place  was  the  number  of 
men  armed  to  the  teeth  that  crowded  around  it,  not  for 
the  protection  of  the  royal  household,  but  all  wishing 
to  ask  something  of  their  ruler,  to  crave  some  advice, 
or  to  make  some  complaint.  He  listened  to  each  one 
more  as  a  father  would  than  a  sovereign.  One  could  not 
help  being  struck  with  this  f amiharity ;  it  united  the 
people  and  their  ruler,  and  it  was  so  entirely  genuine,  so 
different  from  anything  one  could  see  or  meet  with  any- 
where else,  that  it  has  remained  a  bright  memory.  The 
Prince  noticed  my  surprise,  but  simply  smiled  and  kindly 
remarked,  "We  are  not  in  Europe,"  adding,  "We  hve 
more  simply  here  than  you  do  in  Berlin."  After  coffee 
and  a  pipe,  Nicholas  began  questioning  me  as  to  the 
reasons    which    had   brought    me   over    to    Cetinje,    and 


2o8         The  Near  East  from  Within 

inquired  whether  I  had  been  entrusted  with  a  mission  of 
some  kind.  This  I  evaded,  explaining  as  the  desire  to 
see  a  new  country  my  excursion  to  the  Black  Mountain. 
He  nodded  and  at  once  started  talking  about  the  Emperor 
William.  "  He  has  been  very  kind  to  me  whenever  I 
have  seen  him,"  he  said,  "and  I  only  wish  I  could  be 
of  some  use  to  him  later  on.  I  am  sure  he  is  a  wise 
monarch  and  one  who  always  thinks  of  the  needs  of  his 
subjects.  And  then  think  what  a  responsible  position  he 
occupies.  The  peace  of  the  world  depends  almost  entirely 
upon  him." 

' '  The  Emperor  has  constantly  been  working  for  the 
cause  of  peace,"  I  replied,  "  and  one  of  the  reasons  why 
he  admires  Your  Highness  so  much  is  that  he  knows  you 
have  done  the  same  thing  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula." 

"Ah!  but  what  can  I  do?"  answered  the  Prince. 
"  I  am  so  helpless  in  the  face  of  all  the  rivalries  that 
abound  among  our  Slav  brethren  and  of  the  cruelty  and 
oppression  exercised  by  the  Turks  in  regard  to  them.  I 
do  what  I  can,  but  how  often  have  not  events  proved  too 
strong  for  me?  We  are  being  threatened  from  all  sides, 
and  Austria  never  spares  an  occasion  to  show  to  us  that 
she  means  to  crush  our  independence.  Then,  on  the 
obverse,  Austria  is  hated  by  all  Slavs,  who  seize  every 
occasion  they  can  find  to  attack  her.  Look  at  all  she  does 
in  Bosnia.  She  is  sure  to  annex  it  and  Herzegovina.  And 
do  you  think  that  the  Slav  populations  of  the  Peninsula 
\vill  not  rise  in  revolt  against  such  a  fact?  What  can  I 
do,  then,  but  follow  them  and  help  them  to  the  defence 


Angling  for  Power  209 

of  their  rights  ?  Ah !  if  I  were  the  King  of  Servia  or 
Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria,  I  might  attempt  to  speak  the 
language  of  reason,  because  then  I  would  have  some  kind 
of  authority  vested  in  my  hands.  As  it  is,  I  am  but  a 
poor  little  prince  of  no  consequence,  and  must  needs 
follow  the  lead  of  others,  who  often  tell  me  to  hold  my 
tongue  because  amidst  so  many  kings  I  have  no  place." 

I  hastened  to  reply. 

"  If  rumour  speaks  the  truth.  Your  Highness  has 
already  more  than  once  been  entreated  to  change  your 
title  for  that  of  a  sovereign,  but  have  always  refused." 

''  Ah,  yes,  you  have  been  told  so;  but,  believe  me,  it 
is  all  a  mistake.  My  subjects  may  have  wished  me  to  be 
called  by  the  title  of  king,  but  of  what  consequence  can 
be  their  wishes?  It  is  Europe  that  has  the  word  to  say 
in  such  a  matter,  and  so  far  Europe  has  not  taken  kindly 
to  the  idea — at  least,  has  not  encouraged  it,  and  it  is 
entirely  out  of  the  question  for  me  to  move  in  the  matter 
so  long  as  she  remains  silent." 

"  Ah,  but  my  Emperor  would  be  quite  willing  to  take 
the  initiative  in  the  affair,"  I  ventured  to  say  ;  "  he  would 
require,  though,  to  know  what  were  the  views  of  Your 
Highness  in  matters  of  general  politics.  The  Emperor 
is  upon  terms  of  close  friendship  with  the  Sultan ;  he 
could  hardly  encourage  any  demonstrations  of  hostility  in 
regard  to  the  latter,  and  Montenegro  has  never  been  the 
friend  of  Turkey." 

'  *  Has  never  been  ?    You  are  right  to  talk  in  the  sense 

of  the  past,"  interrupted  Prince  Nicholas.     ''All  those 
o 


210        The  Near  East  from  Within 

heroic  times  have  gone  never  to  return,  I  hope.  Why 
should  we  not  Hve  at  peace  with  Islam  after  all?  We 
only  want  the  Moslems  to  leave  us  alone,  and  not  to 
oppress  and  persecute  our  brethren  in  race  and  faith.  If 
your  Emperor,  through  his  personal  relations  with  the 
Sultan,  could  obtain  us  that  boon,  then  indeed  Monte- 
negro would  feel  itself  under  an  obligation  to  follow  him 
in  his  pohcy  far  more  than  if  he  had  troubled  to  help 
me  personally  to  get  a  title,  which,  though  it  would  add 
considerably  to  my  authority,  could  not  contribute  in 
any  way  whatsoever  to  my  happiness." 

"  I  am  certain  that  the  influence  of  my  Sovereign  will 
always  be  exercised  in  the  cause  of  humanity,"  was  my 
answer,  "  and  the  very  fact  that  he  has  asked  me  not  to 
neglect  an  opportunity,  should  it  arise  during  my  journey 
to  this  beautiful  country,  to  obtain  some  idea  of  the  inten- 
tions of  Your  Highness  proves  it  once  more.  He  is 
convinced  that  Montenegro  is  the  dominant  factor  of  the 
whole  situation  in  the  Balkans,  and  I  am  sure  it  would 
be  of  sincere  interest  to  understand  whether  you  would 
take  part  in  any  dispute,  should  complications  ever  arise, 
or  would  preserve  a  strict  neutrahty.  Your  Highness  will 
probably  agree  with  me  that  a  decision  to  remain  neutral 
in  Montenegro  would  certainly  mean  that  the  other 
Balkan  States  would  remain  neutral  too." 

"It  is  very  hard  for  me  to  say  what  I  should  do," 
rephed  Nicholas  with  quiet  weight  in  his  tone;  "  but  if 
I  could  talk  on  a  footing  of  equality  with  Servia  and 
Bulgaria,  and  Montenegro  were  no  longer  the  poor  little 


Nicholas   I.  of  Montencijro 


A  Sphinx-like  Monarch  211 

principality  it  is  to-day,  then  most  certainly  I  should  do 
my  utmost  to  persuade  all  those  within  reach  of  my 
words  and  influence  that  they  ought  to  do  all  that  is  in 
their  power  in  order  to  prevent  any  conflagration,  should 
such  an  unhoped  for  calamity  arise,  from  spreading 
beyond  its  original  limits." 

Try  as  I  would,  I  could  not  induce  the  Prince  to 
give  me  his  views  in  a  clearer  or  more  categorical  form. 
He  remained  impenetrable,  and  I  left  him  with  the  con- 
viction that  the  only  manner  by  which  one  could  hope 
to  enhst  his  sympathies  would  be  to  help  him  in  his 
ambition  to  become  a  king. 

It  will  be  remembered  by  the  student  of  history  that 
when  Prince  Nicholas  was  made  a  king  later  on,  it  was 
the  Cabinet  of  Berlin  which  agitated  most  zealously  for 
the  recognition  of  Nicholas  as  Sovereign  of  Montenegro 
and  for  the  erection  of  that  principahty  into  a  kingdom. 

When  the  thing  had  become  a  fact  the  new  Monarch 
paid  a  visit  to  WiUiam  II.  in  Berlin  for  the  ostensible 
purpose  of  expressing  his  thanks.  The  Emperor  received 
him  even  more  warmly  than  he  had  done  on  the  occasion 
of  his  previous  visits,  and  tried  to  persuade  him  to  give 
an  opinion  as  to  his  intentions  in  the  delicate  matter  of 
European  influence  in  the  Balkans.  But  the  Emperor 
was  soon  to  realise  that  few  men  have  grasped  so 
thoroughly  as  Nicholas  of  Montenegro  the  problem  of 
never  allowing  oneself  to  be  inveigled  into  expressing 
an  opinion  on  a  dangerous  subject. 

Some  time  later,  when  his  troops  had  taken  Scutari 


212         The  Near  East  from  Within 

in  Albania  by  storm,  Nicholas  was  approached  by  a 
German  agent.  He  refused  to  consider  any  proposals 
unless  he  was  definitely  left  in  possession  of  Scutari.  It 
was  impossible,  for  Germany  was  inextricably  involved  to 
support  Turkey,  and  so  Nicholas  —  the  ruler  of  the 
smallest  kingdom  in  Europe — threw  down  the  gauntlet 
and  followed  the  example  of  Russia  and  England  by 
declaring  war  on  Germany. 


CHAPTER  XX 

TSAR  FERDINAND  OF  BULGARIA 

Ayf  Y  journey  to  Sofia  to  see  the  Bulgarian  King — or 
•^^-■-  Tsar  as  he  preferred  to  be  called — was  one  of  those 
secret  missions  with  which  I  was  entrusted  by  Wilhelm- 
strasse  whenever  they  desired  to  ascertain  things  it  would 
not  have  been  easy  to  discover  through  official  channels. 
I  was  known  to  be  fond  of  travelling,  and  by  assuming 
the  role  of  an  enfant  terrible  to  whom  years  had  not 
brought  discretion  was  forgiven  much,  and  on  the  whole 
enabled  to  render  certain  services  to  the  Emperor  and 
the  Fatherland  which  under  other  conditions  would 
hardly  have  been  possible. 

When  I  started  upon  my  so-called  pleasure  trip  to 
Bulgaria  the  Treaty  of  Bucharest  had  just  been  signed, 
and  the  whole  of  the  Balkans  still  bore  the  impress  of 
the  devastating  struggle.  Bulgaria  had  been  humbled  to 
the  dust,  and  Servia,  though  triumphant  in  appearance, 
had  bought  her  victory  at  the  cost  of  enormous  sacrifices. 
Greece  had  not  fared  much  better,  and  that  degree  of 
superiority  was  only  due  to  the  rare  intelligence  of  her 
Premier,  M.  Venizelos. 

The  Emperor  William  II.  had  been  rather  sorry  to 

213 


214         The  Near  East  from  Within 

see  the  defeat  of  King  Ferdinand.  He  had  an  admiration 
for  success,  and  in  Ferdinand's  case  the  defeat  was  the 
only  set-back  in  a  career  of  marked  progress.  King 
Ferdinand  had  been  a  younger  son  of  a  family  which  by, 
dint  of  patience  and  of  ability  had  succeeded  in  pushing 
itself  forward  and  in  taking  possession  of  several  thrones 
in  Europe.  The  Coburgs  were  ever  an  ambitious  race, 
and  the  present  King  of  Bulgaria  is  no  exception  to  the 
rule. 

When  Prince  Ferdinand  was  invited  to  take  up  the 
task  which  Prince  Alexander  of  Battenberg  had  found 
himself  unable  to  tackle,  he  had  consulted  his  mother, 
the  famous  Princess  Clementine  of  Orleans.  The  Princess 
was  one  of  those  women  born  to  great  things,  built  after 
the  model  of  Maria  Theresa  or  of  the  great  Catherine, 
but  who  had  found  herself  compelled  all  her  life  to  occupy 
a  subordinate  position  in  which  her  rare  faculties  had  been 
deprived  of  exercise.  Her  marriage  had  not  been  a  very 
happy  one,  and  her  sons  had  also  not  altogether  satisfied 
her  maternal  ambitions.  She  saw  suddenly  in  her  old 
age  the  possibility  to  realise  the  secret  dreams  and  long- 
ings of  her  youth  and,  under  the  name  of  a  beloved  child, 
at  last  to  have  something  to  say  in  the  destinies  of  Europe. 
Princess  Clementine  nursed  great  ambitions.  The  friend 
of  the  Jesuits  and  the  supporter  of  the  Catholic  cause 
wherever  she  went,  she  had  brought  up  Prince  Ferdinand 
with  special  care,  and  had  kept  him  so  entirely  under 
her  own  wing  that  he  had  acquired  a  love  for  fine  dresses 
and  jewels  and  rather  feminine  tastes;  but  at  the  same 


Ferdinand  Elected  to  Bulgaria       215 

time  he  had  strongly  developed  literary  and  artistic  tastes 
and  had  become  most  certainly,  from  the  intellectual 
point  of  view,  a  cultivated  and  remarkable  man. 

When  the  Princess  advised  her  son  to  accept  his 
election  as  Prince  of  Bulgaria  she  did  not  intend  him  to 
fail,  but  brought  to  his  help  all  the  resources  of  which 
she  was  possessed,  and  all  her  vast  wealtli.  She  accom- 
panied Prince  Ferdinand  to  Sofia,  and  established  herself 
there,  using  all  her  rare  faculties  of  mind  and  her  great 
intelligence  to  win  popularity  for  her  son.  She  opened 
her  doors  to  representatives  of  all  the  different  parties, 
smiled  at  M.  Stambouloff,  shook  hands  with  M.  Rado- 
slavoff,  and  lured  to  her  side  all  the  leading  men  in 
Bulgaria,  whom  she  treated  with  the  utmost  affability, 
without  appearing  to  notice  their  lack  of  manners  or 
the  incongruities  of  their  conduct  at  table.  She  even 
invited  the  members  of  the  national  clergy  to  her  hospit- 
able home,  and  began  discussing  gravel}^  with  them  the 
possibility  of  union  with  Rome,  which  was  the  one  thing 
for  which  her  soul  craved  and  which  she  would  have  liked 
to  achieve. 

She  spent  her  money  freely,  showing  herself  more 
than  generous  whenever  the  occasion  to  open  her  purse 
presented  itself.  She  interested  herself  in  the  question 
of  education,  favoured  the  opening  of  new  schools,  and 
most  of  those  already  existing  throughout  Bulgaria 
obtained  large  subsidies  from  her.  Whilst  known  to 
possess  no  ambition  save  that  of  furthering  the  fortunes 
of  her  son,  she  nevertheless  contrived  to  make  personal 


2i6         The  Near  East  from  Within 

friends  for  herself  among  his  adversaries,  and  men  of  all 
parties  were  glad  to  appeal  to  her  common  sense  and  to 
use  her  as  a  go-between  in  their  negotiations  with  the 
Prince.  At  the  same  time  she  urged  her  son  to  begin 
building  for  himself  that  wonderful  palace  of  Euxinograd, 
which  has  become  one  of  the  most  beautiful  things  of 
its  kind  in  Europe.  The  far-seeing  Princess  had  some- 
thing else  in  view  when  she  advised  Prince  Ferdinand 
to  erect  it.  She  wanted  him  to  have  a  place  of  refuge 
where,  if  the  necessity  arose,  he  could  defy  any  revolution 
that  might  break  out  in  Sofia  and  where  he  would  be 
safe  from  any  attempt  to  kill  or  kidnap  him,  as  had 
happened  to  poor  Prince  Alexander  of  Battenberg. 
Euxinograd  is  built  on  the  seashore,  and  its  towers 
command  an  extraordinary  view.  A  yacht  always  at 
anchor  in  the  roads  would  provide  an  easy  escape  from 
danger.  Princess  Clementine  never  left  things  to  chance. 
This  extreme  caution,  coupled  with  great  determination 
and  an  almost  ferocious  strength  of  will,  has  been  inherited 
by  her  son,  who  has  given  proofs  of  it  during  the  whole 
time  he  has  occupied  the  throne  of  Bulgaria. 

When  Prince  Ferdinand  arrived  in  Sofia  he  found  the 
position  there  extremely  difficult.  Not  one  among  the 
great  Powers  wished  to  recognise  him.  Russia  simply 
ignored  his  pretensions,  and  the  Tsar  Alexander  III. 
declared  that  the  less  he  heard  about  him  the  more  pleased 
he  would  be.  This  was  a  serious  check  in  the  political 
career  of  the  new  ruler  of  Bulgaria,  and  at  first  no  one 
believed    he    could   hold    his    own.     Europe    was   over- 


Internal  Opposition  217 

generous  in  snubbing  Ferdinand,  but  he  settled  in  Sofia 
without  minding  in  the  very  least  the  fact  that  no  one 
consented  to  acknowledge  his  position  there  as  either 
stable  or  even  legitimate,  and  he  started  to  govern  the 
country  that  had  placed  him  at  its  head  with  the  utmost 
coolness  and  determination.  He  was  always  cheerful, 
always  amiable,  always  pleasant.  He  held  long  interviews 
with  his  cook  every  morning  that  proved  most  satisfactory 
for  those  whom  he  invited  to  sit  at  his  hospitable  board, 
and  he  assumed  an  indifference  to  the  judgments  of  his 
adversaries.  After  a  few  months  the  world  ceased  laugh- 
ing at  him,  and  after  a  few  years  it  was  he  who  laughed 
at  it. 

Nevertheless,  those  first  days  of  sovereignty  were 
indeed  a  hard  trial  for  the  Prince.  For  one  thing, 
Ferdinand  discovered  very  soon  after  he  had  set  his  foot 
on  Bulgarian  soil  that  a  strong  party  was  intriguing 
against  him.  He  had  found  that  the  one  powerful  man 
in  Sofia  was  M.  StambouloflP,  who  had  been  nicknamed 
"  The  King-maker,"  and  whose  word  was  law.  M. 
Stambouloff  and  Prince  Ferdinand  did  not  agree  well 
together,  being  both  men  of  strong  opinions  and  of  most 
unyielding  character,  with  one  essential  difference,  how- 
ever. The  Bulgarian  statesman,  with  all  his  faults  and 
a  certain  cruelty  in  his  nature  which  it  is  impossible  to 
deny,  was  incapable  of  deceit.  Prince  Ferdinand,  on  the 
contrary,  was  trained  to  the  belief  that  the  end  justified 
whatever  means  were  employed  to  attain  it.  It  was  not 
long  before  these  two  men  showed  an  open  antagonism 


2i8         The  Near  East  from  Within 

to  each  other.  Stambouloff  declared  with  emphasis  that 
he  could  not  enter  into  Ferdinand's  plans,  and  did  not 
take  the  trouble  to  conceal  his  reasons. 

In  the  end  M.  Stambouloff  was  murdered  one  evening 
as  he  was  returning  home.  He  was  very  popular ;  many 
people  mourned  him  sincerely,  but  at  the  same  time  it 
was  felt  all  over  the  country  that  his  hostility  in  regard 
to  the  Prince  might  have  brought  about  serious  difficulties 
in  the  future. 

With  Ferdinand  things  prospered,  the  people  recog- 
nised in  him  a  leader  after  their  own  heart,  and  the 
country  was  certainly  making  favourable  progress.  In 
the  meantime  Ferdinand  had  married  the  Princess  Marie 
Louise  of  Bourbon-Parme,  the  eldest  of  the  nineteen 
children  of  the  exiled  Due  de  Parme.  She  was  a  sweet 
woman  with  lovely  hazel  eyes  and  eminently  attractive. 
Hers  was  not  a  happy  married  life,  and  she  must  have 
regretted  more  than  once  the  park  of  the  Villa  Pianore, 
near  Lucques,  where  she  had  spent  her  childhood. 
Ferdinand  treated  her  with  a  roughness  that  was  the 
more  wonderful  that  he  was  generally  studiously  polite 
to  all  those  with  whom  he  came  into  contact ;  but  the 
straightforward  character  of  the  Princess  jarred  on  his 
nerves.  It  was  not  remarkable,  therefore,  that  Ferdin- 
and and  his  gentle  wife  became  estranged,  and  that  the 
Princess  Clementine  continued  as  the  moving  spirit  at 
the  little  Court  of  Sofia,  her  word  law,  and  her  influence 
and  authority  beyond  dispute. 

For  many  years  Clementine  really  ruled  under  her 


/Violo  .    Voi  «   Tm 


Ferdinand   I.  of  liulfjaria 


Princess  Clementine  219 

son's  name,  and  during  that  period  Bulgaria  developed 
in  an  astonishing  manner.     The  Princess  never  let  an 
occasion  pass  for  furthering  Bulgarian  interests,   whilst 
saying  the  whole  time  that  it  was  Prince  Ferdinand  alone 
whose  initiative  brought  about  the  various  reforms  that 
were     being     prosecuted    with    commendable     activity. 
Ferdinand's  mother  was  liked  and  appreciated  at  every 
Court  in  Europe,  and  furthered  the  interests  of  her  son 
with  an  energy  that  was  quite  wonderful  in  such  an  old 
woman.     Mother  and  son  loved  each  other  with  a  warm, 
strong  affection,  and  the  Prince  had  the  good  sense  to 
submit  to  her  judgment.     Being  under  the  influence  of 
the  Jesuits,  it  was  the  lasting  hope  of  Princess  Clementine 
to  restore  the  Bulgarian  Church  to  the  arms  of  Rome. 
It  would  be  a  long  story,  with  far  more  ramifications  than 
can  be  set  out  in  logical  sequence,  to  explain  the  policy 
by  which  the  Princess  sought  to  carry  out  her  ambition. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  it  was  this  great  aim  on  her  part 
that  has  always  actuated  Ferdinand's  keen  hope  that  one 
day  he  will  be  acknowledged  as  head  of  the  Christian 
Church  in  the  Near  East,   and  be  proclaimed  as  such 
from  the  altar  steps  of  the  Cathedral  of  St.  Sophia  in 
Constantinople. 

When  Princess  Clementine  died  she  liad  the  satis- 
faction of  knowing  that  no  mother  could  have  done  more 
for  a  son.  The  old  internal  antagonisms  had  been  swept 
away,  the  coldness  of  Europe  had  been  thawed,  and, 
from  being  a  prince  on  sufferance,  Ferdinand  was  in  a 
fair  way  to  becoming  a  king,  his  principaUty  converted 


220         The  Near  East  from  Within 

into  a  kingdom,  and  his  influence  a  deciding  factor  in 
Balkan  politics. 

Very  friendlj^  relations  existed  between  the  Princess 
Clementine  and  the  German  Emperor,  who  after  having 
failed  for  some  time  to  propitiate  her,  had  suddenly 
succeeded  in  doing  so.  The  fact  is,  that  the  shrewd  old 
lady  understood  very  well  that  it  would  be  a  master  stroke 
on  her  part  to  secure  the  good  will  of  William  II.  for 
her  son  without  seeming  eager  to  obtain  it.  William  II., 
always  watchful  of  everything  that  was  going  on  in  the 
East,  and  desirous  of  assuring  himself  of  allies  capable  of 
counteracting  the  action  of  Russia  in  the  Balkans,  was 
but  too  glad  to  see  the  Princess  Clementine  appeal  to 
him  when  certain  difficulties  arose.  He  extended  to  her 
as  well  as  to  Prince  Ferdinand  all  the  help  it  was  in  his 
power  to  give.  He  persuaded  the  Austrian  Government 
to  forget  that  the  Prince  of  Bulgaria  had  accepted  the 
throne  of  that  country  in  defiance  of  its  opposition,  and 
he  brought  about  an  interview  with  the  latter  and  the 
Emperor  Francis  Joseph,  which  was  the  first  step  toward 
an  official  recognition  of  his  election  as  ruler  of  unruly 
Bulgaria. 

This  was  an  important  result,  but  so  long  as  the  Tsar 
Alexander  III.  was  alive  Prince  Ferdinand  could  not  feel 
himself  secure  at  Sofia.  The  Tsar  could  not  digest  "  that 
adventurer,"  as  he  called  him,  who  in  defiance  of  Russia 
and  of  Russia's  desires  had  ventured  to  instal  himself  at 
Sofia.  William  II.  did  try  once  to  say  a  word  to  the 
Tsar  to  the  effect  that  Prince  Ferdinand  was  after  all  not 


Flirting  with  Russia  221 

so  bad,  but  no  reply  was  vouchsafed  to  this  remark. 
Matters  therefore  remained  in  abeyance  until  the  world 
was  startled  by  the  news  that  the  Tsar  was  dying.  Very 
soon  Nicholas  II.  reigned  in  his  place. 

It  was  then  that  the  German  Emperor,  always  intent 
upon  great  schemes,  made  a  suggestion  for  winning  the 
favour  of  Russia,  which  met  with  full  sympathy  from 
Princess  Clementine  of  Coburg,  to  whom  he  mentioned 
it,  and  received  the  tacit  sanction  of  the  Jesuits,  whose 
influence  over  her  was  so  great.  Unknown  to  William  II., 
the  same  idea  had  already  entered  the  mind  of  another. 
The  plan  was  that  Prince  Ferdinand  of  Coburg  should 
have  his  children  publicly  baptised  into  the  Greek  Ortho- 
dox faith.  What  followed  is  the  subject  of  another 
chapter. 


CHAPTER   XXI 

THE   fflSTORY   OF   A   CONVERSION 

COMING  as  it  did  from  people  who  had  always 
been  considered  strong  supporters  of  the  Roman 
Church,  the  scheme  for  the  re-baptism  of  the  Bulgarian 
Crown  Prince  Boris,  to  which  reference  was  made  in 
the  last  chapter,  at  first  sight  appeared  monstrous.  In 
reality  it  was  not  so  extraordinary  as  it  seemed.  The 
Greek  Orthodox  Church  was  not  the  same  as  the  National 
Bulgarian  Church,  though  many  people  believed  them  to 
be  identical.  The  Greek  Church  in  the  East  is  under 
the  sway  of  the  Patriarch  of  Constantinople  or  of  the 
Holy  Synod  in  Petersburg,  whilst  the  Bulgarian  Church 
is  independent,  with  its  own  hierarchy.  The  leaders  of 
the  Bulgarian  Church  were  in  a  state  of  continual  revolt 
against  the  persistent  attempts  to  bring  it  under  the 
dominion  of  the  Constantinople  Community  and  its 
Patriarch. 

The  Princess  Clementine  had  long  been  working  at  the 
Vatican  to  secure  the  recognition  of  the  Bulgarian  Church 
by  the  Pope,  and  of  thus  bringing  it  back  into  the  bosom 
of  the  Church  of  Rome.  She  was  aided  in  that  enterprise 
by  the  Jesuits,  who  had  established  colleges  and  schools 


A  Question  of  Faith  223 

in  Bulgaria,  and  who  were  agitating  with  considerable 
success  to  cause  the  bulk  of  the  people  to  favour  the  re- 
union of  the  National  Church  with  the  Latin  community. 
Prince  Ferdinand  fully  supported  the  movement.  There 
was  nothing  in  the  tenets  of  the  National  Bulgarian 
Church  that  could  be  considered  as  distinctly  antagonistic 
to  Cathohcism.  Therefore,  argued  Princess  Clementine, 
it  was  easy  to  bring  about  a  fusion  of  these  two  forces 
which,  working  in  unison,  might  in  time  become  a  most 
important  factor  in  European  politics.  A  reconciliation 
with  Rome  could  not  fail  to  make  Prince  Ferdinand 
popular. 

Even  before  the  death  of  Alexander  III.  the  question 
of  the  conversion  of  Prince  Ferdinand's  eldest  son  had 
been  raised.  An  intimate  friend  of  the  Prince  had 
touched  upon  it  during  a  conversation  with  Prince 
Lobanoif,  who  had  just  been  appointed  at  the  head  of 
the  Russian  Foreign  Office.  This  conversation  had  taken 
place  in  Paris,  where  Lobanoff  was  enjoying  a  short 
holiday.  The  interview  took  place  at  the  Cafe  Anglais, 
on  the  boulevards,  where  the  confidant  of  the  ambitious 
schemes  of  Prince  Ferdinand  had  invited  the  Russian 
statesman  to  dine.  Prince  Lobanoff  had  said  nothing  to 
these  overtures,  not  caring  to  compromise  himself  at 
random,  but  on  his  return  to  Petersburg  he  fostered  the 
idea,  believing  that  it  would  prove  a  good  pretext  for 
bringing  about  a  reconciliation  between  Bulgaria  and 
Russia.  Alexander  III.  had  died  in  the  meantime,  and 
Nicholas  II.  did  not  entertain  the  same  antagonism  to 


224         The  Near  East  from  Within 

Prince  Ferdinand.  When,  therefore,  the  latter  once 
more  approached  the  Russian  Government,  his  request 
that  the  Tsar  might  sanction  the  re-baptism  of  his  little 
boy  according  to  the  rites  of  the  Greek  Church  met  with 
acceptance.  The  Tsar  even  promised  to  send  a  repre- 
sentative to  Sofia  to  attend  the  ceremony,  and  Prince 
Ferdinand  proceeded  to  make  public  his  decision  as  soon 
as  he  had  ascertained  for  sure  that  Russia  was  to  show 
publicly  her  acquiescence. 

To  the  surprise  of  Prince  Ferdinand  a  good  many 
persons  in  Bulgaria  disapproved  of  the  measure,  among 
them  his  own  wife,  the  Princess  Marie  Louise.  Her 
honest  soul  and  simple  mind  refused  to  accept  such  a 
political  apostasy,  and  her  strictly  Roman  Cathohc  con- 
victions rose  up  in  horror  and  disgust  at  the  thought 
of  her  child  being  thrust  into  another  faith  than  her 
own.  At  first  she  declared  that  she  would  never  consent 
to  the  thing,  and  when  told  that  her  sanction  or  other- 
wise was  of  no  consequence,  expressed  her  resolution  to 
leave  Sofia  rather  than  approve  by  her  presence  an  act 
to  which  she  entirely  dissented.  Princess  Marie  charac- 
terised the  act  as  a  shameful  political  concession  not  to 
the  necessities  of  the  moment,  but  to  further  the  ambition 
of  her  husband. 

At  first  she  hoped  that  the  Pope  would  come  to  her 
help,  and  wrote  imploring  his  assistance.  But  Leo  XIII. 
was  far  too  shrewd  a  statesman  to  do  aught  else  but  pity 
and  comfort  her.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  Leo  XIII.  knew 
somewhat  of  the  details  of  the  contemplated  conversion, 


Cardinal  Ledochowski  225 

for  Princess  Clementine  had  spent  some  weeks  in  Rome 
just  before  Princess  Marie  Louise  had  sent  her  pathetic 
appeal.  Princess  Clementine  had  conferred  with  several 
of  the  prelates,  and  among  others  the  Prefect  of  the  Con- 
gregation of  the  Propaganda,  Cardinal  Ledochowski,  a 
Pole,  and  a  man  whose  secret  desire,  ever  since  he  had 
received  the  red  hat,  had  been  to  bring  about  a  reunion  of 
the  Latin  and  the  Greek  Churches.  He  hated  Russia,  and 
knew  that  the  establishment  of  a  modus  vivendi  would  pro- 
cure for  the  Jesuits  a  recognition  throughout  the  Balkan 
Peninsula  of  the  Church  discipline  of  Rome,  and  certainly, 
therefore,  deal  a  considerable  blow  to  Russian  influence. 
At  all  events  it  was  a  game  worth  trying,  and  the  Jesuits 
entered  into  it  with  zeal.  The  Archbishop  of  Sofia  was 
told  that  if  he  would  only  consent  to  help  Prince 
Ferdinand,  and  work  together  with  him  to  bring  about 
a  reconciliation  between  his  clergy  and  the  Church  of 
Rome,  the  See  of  Sofia  would  be  raised  to  the  rank  of 
a  Patriarchate,  and  he  should  be  put  at  its  head,  thus 
being  relieved  from  rendering  obedience  to  the  Patriarch 
of  Constantinople. 

In  exchange  for  this  advancement  he  was  to  allow 
the  Jesuits  to  instal  themselves  all  over  Bulgaria,  to  open 
schools,  and  to  make  converts.  A  message  from  Pope 
Leo  himself  was  handed  to  him,  which  said  that  the  bless- 
ing of  God  would  follow  him  if  he  would  only  work  for 
the  spiritual  welfare  of  Bulgaria  and  help  the  Church  of 
that  country  to  keep  its  position  national  and  inde- 
pendent ;  and,  finally,  large  sums  of  monej'^  w^ere  placed 


226         The  Near  East  from  Within 

at  his  disposal,  a  proceeding  which  helped  a  good  deal 
to  a  decision. 

In  this  adventure — for  one  can  hardly  call  it  anything 
else — everybody  was  the  dupe  of  somebody  else.  The 
Russian  Foreign  Office  believed  that  by  entering  into 
the  views  of  Prince  Ferdinand  it  would  definitely  sever 
his  connection  with  Austria ;  the  Vatican  hoped  to  bring 
about  through  his  medium  the  union  of  the  Latin  and 
Greek  Churches,  which  had  been  the  subject  of  its  secret 
desire  for  centuries ;  Austria  hoped  that  the  influence  of 
the  Jesuits  would  make  her  popular  in  the  Balkans,  where 
she  knew  very  well  that  she  was  not  liked ;  the  Princess 
Clementine  hoped  that  the  position  of  her  beloved  son 
would  become  safer  and  stronger  after  the  heavy  sacrifice 
he  had  accepted  in  order  to  consoUdate  his  dynasty; 
Prince  Ferdinand  hoped  that  by  this  step  he  was  getting 
nearer  to  the  fulfilment  of  his  cherished  schemes  to  be 
recognised  as  King  of  Bulgaria;  the  Emperor  William 
alone  hoped  nothing,  because  he  knew  that  his  suggestions 
had  borne  fruit  and  that  whatever  happened  it  could  only 
be  to  his  benefit. 

A  curious  incident  in  this  most  curious  historical 
episode  was  related  to  me  some  time  later.  It  seems  that 
after  the  departure  of  the  envoy  who  had  represented 
the  Tsar  at  the  christening  of  Prince  Boris,  the  latter 's 
father  wrote  to  William  II.  an  account  of  the  ceremony, 
adding  the  remark  that  the  only  thing  for  which  he  felt 
sorry  was  that  he  had  not  been  able  to  have  a  photograph 
taken  of  it,  which  he  would  have  hked  to  send  to  Berhn, 


A  Palpable  Snub  227 

but  that  the  Archbishop  of  Sofia  had  objected  to  the  idea. 
He  concluded  with  the  words  :  "  I  feel  sure  that  Your 
Majesty  would  have  appreciated  it  with  the  sense  of 
humour  which  you  possess." 

A  few  months  later  Prince  Ferdinand  went  to  Russia 
to  present  his  compliments  to  the  Tsar  on  the  occasion 
of  the  latter 's  coronation.  In  Moscow  he  was  more  or 
less  shunned  by  everybody ;  even  the  Imperial  Family 
treated  him  with  a  certain  reserve.  To  a  chosen  few 
he  unburdened  his  soul,  and,  when  speaking  to  them 
about  the  conversion  of  his  son,  added  that  he  him- 
self was  studying  the  Orthodox  religion,  as  he  might 
possibly  follow  his  son's  example.  The  world,  he  added, 
had  attributed  unworthy  motives  to  him  that  were 
absolutely  inconsistent  with  facts.  "  I  hope,"  he  con- 
tinued, "  that  my  children  will  reign  in  Bulgaria  after 
I  am  dead  and  gone ;  and  I  have  done  what  I  thought  it 
my  duty  to  do  in  order  to  smooth  the  way  for  them  in 
the  future.  A  sovereign  who  professes  another  religion 
to  that  of  his  people  finds  himself  always,  at  one  time  or 
other,  in  conflict  with  them.  I  wished  my  son  to  be 
spared  this  dilemma,  and  so  decided  that  he  had  better 
be  brought  up  in  the  faith  which  is  that  of  his  country." 
One  thing,  however,  Ferdinand  achieved  during  the 
weeks  he  spent  in  Moscow.  He  had  several  interviews 
with  the  German  Ambassador,  Prince  Radolin,  and 
through  him  conveyed  to  William  II.  his  personal 
impressions  of  what  he  had  seen  and  observed. 

Before  taking  leave  of  the  Emperor  and  Empress  he 


228        The  Near  East  from  Within 

had  expressed  the  desire  to  introduce  to  them  his  wife, 
the  Princess  Marie  Louise,  who  had  returned  to  Sofia 
from  the  shores  of  the  Riviera,  where  she  had  spent  some 
months  after  her  abrupt  departure  from  Bulgaria.  The 
Empress  of  Russia  rephed  that  she  would  feel  delighted 
to  make  the  acquaintance  of  the  Princess,  upon  which 
the  programme  of  a  visit  was  fixed  there  and  then  by 
Prince  Ferdinand  himself. 

About  eighteen  months  later  he  visited  Russia  once 
more,  this  time  accompanied  by  his  consort.  They  were 
received  at  Peterhof  with  great  pomp.  Little  Prince 
Boris  was  with  his  parents,  attended  by  his  tutor,  a 
Bulgarian  monk,  who  never  left  him  and  whose  presence 
at  the  side  of  the  boy  excited  a  good  deal  of  curiosity 
and  even  a  certain  amount  of  interest  in  Petersburg. 
The  Princess  also  won  all  hearts,  and  altogether  the  visit 
was  a  greater  success  than  one  could  have  expected. 

Prince  Ferdinand,  encouraged  by  this  reception, 
began  to  plan  visits  to  other  European  Courts,  and 
probably  would  have  carried  out  his  intention  had  not 
Fate  interfered.  The  Princess  Marie  Louise  died  most 
unexpectedly  in  childbirth,  and  her  husband  had  perforce 
to  resign  himself  to  months  of  quiet  life. 

Ferdinand's  mother  hastened  to  his  side,  arriving  from 
Vienna  in  the  middle  of  winter,  and  installed  herself  at 
the  palace  of  Sofia.  She  took  up  the  education  of  the 
motherless  children  of  her  son,  and  watched  over  them 
with  a  devotion  that  left  nothing  to  be  desired.  Under 
her  guidance  the  two  boys  developed  quite  wonderfully. 


German  Influence  in  Bulgaria       229 

both  physically  and  intellectually.  She  won  their  con- 
fidence, and  by  dint  of  much  tenderness  ruled  them 
without  the  slightest  sign  of  friction. 

Prince  Ferdinand  allowed  her  considerably  more 
authority  in  his  household  than  he  had  ever  extended  to 
his  wife.  Politically,  too,  he  never  took  a  step  without 
her  advice  and  concurrence ;  and  when  at  last  the  Princess 
Clementine  died,  with  her  vanished  the  real  Sovereign 
of  Bulgaria. 

So  long  as  Princess  Clementine  lived  the  ambitions 
of  Prince  Ferdinand  were  kept  under  a  cloak,  which  he 
hastened  to  discard  the  moment  that  she  was  no  longer 
at  his  elbow.  He  was  determined  to  have  a  royal  diadem 
on  his  brow,  and  as  circumstances  did  not  altogether 
favour  such  a  consummation,  he  made  up  his  mind  to 
come  to  their  rescue.  Ferdinand  had  worked  very  hard 
at  the  organisation  of  the  Bulgarian  army,  and  had  even 
gone  to  the  length  of  providing  it  with  German  military 
instructors,  much  to  the  dismay  of  the  General  Staff  in 
Petersburg.  The  result  was  that  the  ruler  of  Bulgaria 
believed  the  moment  had  come  when  he  might  force 
down  the  throat  of  Europe  a  proclamation  converting 
his  principality  into  a  kingdom,  and  in  order  to  be  able 
to  achieve  this  desirable  result  he  asked  his  great  friend 
William  II.  to  back  him  up  with  the  weight  of  his 
influence.  The  German  Emperor  was  delighted,  but  he 
was  far  too  shrewd  to  engage  himself  in  an  adventure 
that  did  not  concern  him  personally.  He  therefore 
advised  Prince  Ferdinand  to  turn  toward  Austria. 


CHAPTER   XXII 

THE   PERSUADING   OF   TURKEY 

WHEN,  after  the  outbreak  of  the  present  war,  it 
began  to  be  whispered  that  Turkey  might  be 
persuaded  to  take  part,  a  good  many  people  laughed 
outright.  What  gain,  they  asked,  could  she  achieve  by 
mixing  herself  up  in  a  conflict  which  it  was  undeniably 
to  her  advantage  to  watch  from  the  point  of  view 
of  a  neutral  Power?  She  had  just  gone  through  a 
war  which,  but  for  an  unforeseen  incident,  might  have 
ended  disastrously  for  her.  She  had  not  yet  succeeded  in 
liquidating  the  costs  of  this  war,  and  her  credit  stood 
about  as  low  as  it  possibly  could.  Albania  had  been 
definitely  wrested  from  her,  and  though  she  still  held 
hopes  of  being  able  to  win  back  this  province,  no  reason- 
able being  thought  that  these  hopes  could  ever  be 
realised. 

Her  immediate  interest,  at  least  so  it  seemed,  would 
best  be  served  by  remaining  quiet  and  making  use  of  the 
opportunity  to  reorganise  her  armies,  her  finances,  and 
her  general  administration  during  a  time  when  neither 
Russia,  nor  France,  nor  England,  nor  any  other  Power 

in  the  world  could  possibly  interfere  with  her. 

230 


The  Renascence  of  Turkey  231 

When,  therefore,  Rumour  said  thut  Turkey  had 
suddenly  developed  warlike  instincts  and  was  goin<r 
to  seek  a  quarrel  with  her  traditional  enemy  Russia, 
friends  and  enemies  ahke  agreed  that  madness  was  the 
only  possible  explanation  for  such  conduct,  unless  she 
were  actuated  by  reasons  about  which  the  world  knew 
nothing. 

I  am  going  to  try  and  explain  these  underlying 
currents  to  my  readers,  warning  them  at  the  same  time 
that  it  is  quite  possible  I  shall  not  be  quite  accurate  in 
my  tale,  as  some  of  the  darker  shadows  of  the  intrigue 
are  not  within  my  personal  knowledge.  But  what  I  do 
know  is  sufficient  to  prove  clearly  what  kind  of  influences 
were  set  in  motion  to  persuade  Turkey  that  a  bold  step 
in  favour  of  the  dual  alliance — for  Italy  may  be  counted 
out — would  bring  innumerable  benefits  to  the  land  of 
the  Moslem  and  restore  her  rank  as  a  great  Power. 

When  the  second  Balkan  War  had  ended  in  triumph 
for  Turkey  and  she  recovered  part  of  her  lost  territories, 
it  would  still  have  been  possible  to  compel  her  to  give  up 
Adrianople  had  Europe  collectively  decided  that  it  ought 
to  remain  in  the  possession  of  Servia  or  of  Bulgaria. 
Unfortunately,  Europe  was  not  at  all  united  on  the  point. 
The  misfortune  was  that  neither  Servia  nor  Bulgaria 
inspired  sympathy.  Bulgaria,  by  her  perversity  and 
her  ruthlessness  in  provoking  a  conflict  with  her  Slav 
brethren,  was  considered  as  a  false  and  untrustworthy 
nation ;  moreover,  she  had  incurred  the  complete  indiffer- 
ence of  Russia.    On  the  other  hand,  Servia  stood  on  the 


232        The  Near  East  from  Within 

brink  of  a  serious  antagonism  in  regard  to  Austria,  and 
the  latter  Power  would  never  have  consented  to  her 
retaining  such  an  important  stronghold  as  Adrianople. 

Under  these  conditions  the  position  of  the  various 
Cabinets  whose  task  it  was  to  bring  about  the  conclusion 
of  a  peace  urgently  needed  not  only  by  the  belligerents 
but  also  by  the  whole  of  Europe,  for  whom  this  ever- 
lasting Balkan  question  was  a  source  of  constant  danger, 
became  most  difficult.  When,  therefore,  Germany 
tentatively  suggested  through  the  medium  of  her  ambas- 
sador in  London,  Prince  Lichnowsky,  that  the  best  thing 
to  do  would  be  tacitly  to  accept  accomplished  facts  and 
leave  Adrianople  in  the  hands  of  the  Turk,  there  was  a 
feeling  of  general  relief  all  round.  Turkey  w^as  told  that, 
provided  she  behaved  hke  a  good  child,  she  would  be 
allowed  to  retain  possession  of  the  town  which  she  had 
won  back  from  a  demoralised  foe. 

Turkey  promised  everything — and,  of  course,  did 
nothing.  Whether  Turkey  was  honest  of  intention  is 
another  question.  Certainly  her  statesmen  were  not. 
Enver  Pasha  and  the  other  leading  spirits  of  the  Com- 
mittee of  Union  and  Progress  were  clever,  unscrupulous, 
quick  at  seizing  hold  of  the  slightest  mistake  on  the  part 
of  their  antagonists,  anything  but  honest  in  the  sense  we 
understand  the  term  in  Europe. 

When  things  began  to  look  black  in  Mid-Europe, 
Berlin  was  not  slow  in  advising  Enver  Pasha  of  what  had 
been  done  for  his  country.  Enver  Pasha  knew  very  well 
that  this  service  was  far  from  having  been  a  disinterested 


The  Power  of  Gold  233 

one,  but  he  knew,  too,  that  it  was  to  his  interest  to  make 
common  cause  with  Germany,  who  alone  was  seeking  the 
friendship  of  Turkey. 

It  was  at  this  period  of  the  crisis  that  large  sums  of 
money  were  remitted  to  Constantinople,  not  only  to  the 
credit  of  the  Ottoman  Government,  but  also  to  the 
account  of  Enver  Pasha,  the  Sheikh-ul-Islam,  and  several 
influential  members  of  the  Committee  of  Union  and 
Progress.  It  became  known  also  that  a  German  mission, 
headed  by  an  officer  of  high  military  rank  (General  Liman 
von  Sanders),  was  about  to  start  for  Turkey,  to  be  placed 
at  the  service  of  the  Sultan  for  the  purpose  of  carrying 
on  the  thorough  reorganisation  of  the  Turkish  army  on 
German  lines. 

Russia  objected  to  this  mission ;  she  felt  that  it  was 
a  blow  directed  against  her,  and  that  it  was  bound  sooner 
or  later  to  bring  about  a  rupture  of  her  relations  with 
Turkey,  which  up  to  then  had  been  quite  tolerable.  The 
Russian  Ambassador  in  Constantinople,  M.  de  Giers, 
though  not  exactly  a  Talleyrand,  was  an  excellent  and 
conscientious  diplomat  of  much  experience,  who  knew  the 
East  very  well  and  the  Turks  even  better.  He  hastened 
to  write  to  his  Government  that  this  interference  of 
Germany  in  the  internal  affairs  of  the  Ottoman  Empire 
was  certain  to  bring  about  most  unpleasant  and  perhaps 
even  unexpected  results.  M.  Sazonov  then  asked  the 
German  Ambassador  in  Petersburg  (Count  de  Poiu'tales) 
for  an  explanation.  He  was  told  that  there  was  no  inten- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  Berlin  Cabinet  to  interfere  in 


234        The  Near  East  from  Within 

any  way  whatsoever  in  the  administration  of  the  Turkish 
Empire,  and  that  the  mission  of  General  von  Sanders  was 
only  a  continuation  of  the  one  which  had  previously  been 
controlled  by  Field-Marshal  von  der  Goltz.  He  was 
further  assured  that  the  mission  was  of  a  purely  military 
character,  and  that  the  officers  about  to  start  for  Con- 
stantinople had  been  ordered  to  resign  their  commissions 
in  the  German  army  before  offering  their  services  to  the 
Sultan.  He  spoke  in  the  most  conciliatory  terms,  and 
even  offered  to  restrict  the  activity  of  General  von  Sanders 
to  Asia  Minor,  where  he  would  command  raw  recruits, 
and  thus  not  be  in  a  position  to  influence  things  at  Con- 
stantinople and  in  European  Turkey,  where  the  greater 
part  of  the  Ottoman  forces  were  quartered. 

The  Russian  Foreign  Office  accepted  the  explanations 
of  Count  de  Pourtales,  and  orders  were  given  to  the 
newspapers  not  to  criticise  the  subject  of  the  mission  of 
General  von  Sanders  any  further.  The  Tsar  personally 
was  absolutely  convinced  of  the  pacific  dispositions  of  his 
Imperial  cousin  at  Berlin.  The  British  Government,  too, 
for  some  reason  or  other,  thought  it  better  to  pass  in 
silence  the  departure  of  so  many  German  officers  for 
Constantinople. 

A  month  or  two  afterwards,  in  June,  the  Emperor 
William  II.  invited  a  British  squadron  to  visit  him  at 
Kiel,  and  showed  himself  more  than  usually  polite  toward 
its  commanding  officer,  Admiral  Sir  George  Warrender. 
Indeed,  the  Emperor  William  expressed  the  desire  to  be 
allowed,  in  his  character  of  British  admiral,  to  review  the 


British  Squadron  at  Kiel  235 

squadron.  At  the  dinner  which  he  gave  in  honour  of 
the  occasion  the  Emperor  spoke  in  a  most  flattering 
manner  of  the  pleasure  he  had  experienced  in  being  able 
to  welcome  at  his  table  officers  belonging  to  the  glorious 
British  Fleet.  Curiously  enough,  at  the  same  moment 
another  squadron  of  the  British  Fleet  was  being 
entertained  at  Petersburg. 

It  was  during  the  visit  of  the  British  squadron  to  Kiel 
that  the  assassination  of  the  Archduke  Franz  Ferdinand 
took  place  at  Sarajevo.  A  few  days  later,  just  before 
he  started  for  Norway,  William  II.  caused  a  ciphered 
message  to  be  forwarded  to  Enver  Pasha,  who  in 
obedience  thereto  hastened  to  Berlin.  He  spent  two 
days  in  conference  with  General  Moltke,  the  chief  of  the 
German  staff,  but  did  not  see  the  Emperor.  It  was 
only  much  later  that  I  heard  anything  about  this  incident, 
which  had  a  far  greater  significance  than  one  could  have 
supposed  at  the  time.  I  did  not  happen  to  be  in  Berlin 
during  the  brief  visit  of  Enver  Pasha ;  what  I  heard  about 
it,  therefore,  did  not  enlighten  me  as  to  the  real  nature 
of  the  instructions  which  had  been  given.  Later  on 
it  was  reported  to  me  that,  immediately  after  his  return 
to  Constantinople,  Enver  Pasha  began  to  make  military 
preparations.  One  significant  action  was  that  he  had  the 
old  forts  that  guarded  the  entrance  of  the  Dardanelles 
repaired  and  armed  with  German  artillery.  These  pro- 
ceedings did  not  escape  the  vigilant  eyes  of  the  ambassa- 
dors of  the  Allied  Powers,  but  it  was  impossible  to 
prevent  them  being  carried  out. 


236        The  Near  East  from  Within 

Whilst  all  this  was  going  on,  and  the  first  battles  in 
France  and  in  East  Prussia  were  being  fought,  Turkey 
preserved  a  quiet  and  unassuming  attitude.  So  demure 
she  seemed  that  M.  de  Giers  reported  to  his  Government 
that  perhaps  he  might  yet  be  mistaken  in  his  fears  that 
she  intended  to  begin  hostilities  against  Russia.  The 
only  person  who  saw  quite  clearly  what  was  going  to 
happen,  but  who  also  was  quite  powerless  to  stop  the 
catastrophe,  was  the  British  Ambassador,  Sir  Louis 
Mallet,  who,  as  his  despatches  have  revealed,  gave  proof 
of  the  greatest  foresight  and  political  sagacity. 

In  the  meantime  Marshal — ^no  longer  General — Liman 
von  Sanders  was  drawing  back  into  European  Turkey  the 
numerous  regiments  that  had  been  equipped  and  drilled 
in  the  plains  of  Asia  Minor,  and  carefully  following  with 
his  spies  the  movements  of  the  Russian  troops  in  the 
Caucasus.  When  the  greater  number  of  those  that  were 
quartered  in  that  part  of  the  country  had  been  withdrawn, 
he  reported  to  head-quarters  at  Berlin  that  he  was  ready 
for  any  emergency.  Was  it  a  coincidence  or  a  definite 
plot  that  Turkey  should  choose  a  few  days  after  the 
Marshal's  report  as  the  moment  to  bombard  from  her 
ships  several  towns  on  the  Caucasian  littoral?  It  was 
before  war  had  been  declared,  and  Turkey  made  excuses 
for  her  act.  It  was  whispered  in  Petersburg  that  she 
had  been  encouraged  by  disaffection  in  the  Caucasus, 
where  the  Russian  Government  had  uncovered  a  vast 
conspiracy,  but  I  was  never  able  to  confirm  absolutely 
the  truth  of  this  report 


An  Eye  on  the  Suez  Canal  237 

Before  Turkish  vessels  had  opened  fire  on  Russian 
ships  and  bombarded  peaceful  towns  such  as  Odessa  or 
Batoum  there  had  been  many  important  conferences 
between  Enver  Pasha  and  the  German  Ambassador, 
Baron  von  Wangenheim.  The  Baron  told  Enver  Pasha 
that  Turkey  could  be  promised  no  compensation  or 
reward  in  the  Balkans ;  anything  in  that  direction  would 
be  too  productive  of  further  trouble,  as  Roumania, 
Austria,  Servia,  and  Bulgaria  all  held  strong  views  on 
Balkan  matters.  There  remained,  therefore,  only  Egypt, 
Algeria,  and  the  Russian  provinces  forming  part  of  the 
Caucasus.  Egypt  especially  was  the  one  point  upon 
which  both  Germany  and  Enver  Pasha,  who  with  the 
Committee  of  Union  and  Progress  represented  the  only 
party  in  the  Ottoman  Empire  who  had  anything  to  say 
as  to  its  future  destinies,  could  agree  with  alacrity. 

It  may  sound  dishonourable  for  one  in  my  position 
to  say  so,  but  the  world  will  guess  the  truth  ere  long, 
that  Marshal  Liman  von  Sanders  had  been  given  special 
instructions  regarding  that  part  of  the  campaign  which 
aimed  at  the  Suez  Canal,  and  a  number  of  German  staff 
officers  had  been  put  at  his  disposal  for  the  purpose  of 
organising  a  raid  on  Egyptian  territory  at  the  first  oppor- 
tune moment.  Meanwhile  it  was  settled  that,  in  the  case 
of  a  victorious  war,  the  Khedive  Abbas  Hilmi  was  to 
accept  a  half -Turkish,  half-German  garrison,  and  that 
Egypt,  though  nominally  still  under  the  suzerainty  of 
the  Sultan,  was  to  be  given  a  German  administration  and 
to  become  to  all  purposes  practically  a  German  colony. 


238         The  Near  East  from  Within 

In  exchange  for  this  concession,  Turkey  was  to  receive 
all  the  money  that  she,  or  rather  Enver  Pasha,  required ; 
he— Enver  Pasha — was  ultimately  to  become  life  governor 
of  Egypt,  Abbas  being  retired  into  private  life  with  a 
handsome  pension.  Apart  from  this,  Kars  was  to  be 
restored  to  Turkey,  Algeria  and  some  British  provinces 
of  India  were  to  become  Turkish  colonies,  and  Constanti- 
nople was  to  be  made  a  neutral  city.  Such  were  the 
broad  lines  of  the  arrangement  which  was  concluded. 

I  have  given  my  thoughts  at  some  length  on  this 
Turkish  episode,  as  it  seems  to  me  to  be  instructive  from 
more  than  one  point  of  view,  the  most  striking  of  which 
is  that  it  proves  the  absolute  premeditation  with  which 
the  present  war  was  prepared.  If  only  from  this  exclu- 
sive point  of  view,  the  action  of  the  Emperor  WiUiam  II. 
deserves  to  be  considered  with  a  particular  attention, 
because  it  is  pregnant  with  consequences  impossible  to 
foresee  at  present,  but  which  may  in  time  not  inconceiv- 
ably bring  about  the  utter  fall  of  the  German  Empire. 


CHAPTER    XXIII 

EGYPT   IN   THE    BALANCE 

GERMAN  designs  received  a  distinct  set-back  when 
the  British  Government,  a  few  months  ago,  de- 
posed Abbas  Hilmi  and  elevated  the  Khedivial  chair 
into  the  throne  of  a  Sultan.  Hussein  Kemal,  on  whom 
the  honoured  position  was  conferred,  is  a  man  of  con- 
siderable culture,  an  ardent  patriot,  and  a  staunch 
supporter  of  British  rule.  He  is  the  second  son  of 
the  late  Khedive  Ismail,  and  uncle,  therefore,  to  the 
deposed  Abbas  Hilmi.  Prince  Hussein  had  been  sus- 
pected more  than  once,  even  in  the  lifetime  of  his 
father  and  later  on  during  the  reign  of  his  brother, 
Tewfik  Pasha,  of  having  plotted  with  the  idea  of  being 
installed  as  ruler  of  Egypt.  From  what  I  know  person- 
ally of  Prince  Hussein,  I  do  not  believe  he  would  have 
lent  himself  to  the  overthrow  of  either  his  father  or  his 
brother,  but  I  have  no  doubt  that  he  would  have  liked  a 
share  in  the  administration  of  Egypt  rather  than  being 
kept  studiously  in  the  background,  as  was  the  case  for 
a  considerable  number  of  years.  He  was  an  honest  man, 
loved  Egypt,  and,  to  put  it  bluntly,  was  not  such  a  fool 
as  to  remain  blind  to  all  that  Egypt  had  gained  since 

239 


240        The  Near  East  from  Within 

the  British  had  estabUshed  themselves  in  the  land  and 
taken  upon  themselves  the  development  of  her  huge 
resources.  More  than  once  he  had  urged  on  his  nephew 
Abbas  the  necessity  of  remaining  in  accord  with  England. 
The  Khedive,  however,  was  entirely  under  the  influence 
of  Turkey  and  of  his  many  German  friends,  and  con- 
tinued fatuously  to  dream  of  the  overthrow  of  British 
rule. 

Despite  the  vehemence  of  his  protestations  of  sym- 
pathy with  Enver  Pasha,  the  Turkish  leader  had  not  the 
slightest  intention  of  upholding  Abbas  Hilmi  beyond  a 
certain  point.  Mohammed  V.  simply  did  not  count 
either  way.  The  only  person  who  felt  any  affection  for 
Abbas,  and  who  still  supported  him,  was  old  Abdul 
Hamid,  whose  heart  he  had  managed  to  conquer  and 
to  retain,  and  who,  as  I  have  told  in  an  earlier  chapter, 
had  supplied  his  protege  with  money  on  more  than 
one  occasion.  Abbas  professed  sound  Moslem  principles 
and  declared  himself  against  the  innovations  brought 
along  by  the  party  that  had  overthrown  Abdul  Hamid, 
and  the  latter,  therefore,  felt  grateful  to  him  for  it. 
Abdul  had  done  his  best  for  Abbas  Hilmi  and  often 
advised  him  as  to  what  he  was  to  do,  giving  him  the 
benefit  of  his  long  experience  in  political  matters. 
Unfortunately,  he  did  not  find  a  docile  pupil.  Abbas 
could  not  be  honest  even  with  the  one  man  who  had 
befriended  him,  and  he  had  simply  flattered  the  old 
Sultan  because  he  hoped  to  inherit  part  of  the  large 
fortune  which  he  knew  the  latter  had  contrived  to  place 


Abbas  Hilmi  in  Constantinople      241 

in  safety  beyond  the  reach  of  the  cupidity  of  Enver 
Pasha.  He  was  a  very  shrewd  young  man  in  what  con- 
cerned his  material  interests,  and  showed  more  sagacity 
in  that  respect  than  in  poHtical  matters.  When  he  saw 
that  his  position  was  no  longer  secure  at  Cairo  he 
managed  to  mortgage  his  estates  up  to  the  hilt,  so  as  to 
get  out  of  them  all  that  he  could  previous  to  the  seques- 
tration which  he  knew  was  unavoidable  when  the  eyes 
of  England  came  to  be  opened  in  regard  to  his  conduct. 
When  he  left  Cairo  in  the  spring  of  1914  on  his  annual 
holiday  to  Constantinople,  he  took  away  with  him  nearly 
the  whole  of  the  furniture  of  the  Abdin  Palace,  having 
rather  more  than  a  presentiment  that  he  would  not  be 
allowed  to  return. 

Having  little  discretion,  he  had  been  foolish  enough 
more  than  once  to  tell  his  friends  that  he  had  managed 
to  get  into  the  good  graces  and  favour  of  the  German 
Emperor,  and  that  he  could  rely  on  his  protection  should 
any  difficulties  arise  between  him  and  the  English 
Agent,  Lord  Kitchener;  and  somehow,  even  before 
the  question  of  his  deposition  was  ever  raised,  the  impres- 
sion had  got  round  Cairo  that  his  departure  for  his  usual 
hohdays  meant  a  permanent  absence. 

When  I  wrote  the  lines  in  which  I  described  the  trend 
of  affairs  toward  a  possible  Turkish  aggression  on  Suez,  I 
did  not  think  that  a  bold  stroke  of  English  diplomacy 
would  have  cut  the  Gordian  knot  of  a  situation  that  was 
full  of  danger,  by  showing  Abbas  Hilmi  that  he  must 
pay  the  penalty  of  trying  to  be  too  clever.     My  last 

Q 


242         The  Near  East  from  Within 

expectation  was  that  the  Cabinet  in  London  would  so 
neatly  checkmate  the  Emperor  William  II.  and  his 
influence  in  Turkey. 

What  I  wrote  in  the  earlier  pages  of  this  book 
when  touching  upon  the  subject  of  Germany's  designs 
on  Egypt  I  can  only  repeat.  I  will  maintain  my  cry 
of  warning,  for  I  know  that  nothing  has  changed  the 
intentions  of  the  Emperor.  He  is  determined  to  lend 
to  weak,  tottering  Turkey  and  her  unprincipled  Govern- 
ment all  the  aid  possible,  as  he  believes  that  Turkey  alone, 
by  calling  on  the  forces  of  Islam  all  over  the  world,  can 
shatter  the  foundations  of  the  British  Empire. 

One  of  the  main  reasons  why  Germany  has  begun 
this  iniquitous  war  is  that  she  must  expand.  Unfortun- 
ately, she  has  not  realised  the  secret  of  true  colonial 
government.  Germany's  idea,  whether  at  home  or 
abroad,  consists  of  a  military  organisation  reinforced  by 
vexatious  police  espionage,  and  autocratic  methods. 
Militarism  was  introduced  by  Prince  Bismarck,  and  the 
weight  of  his  powerful  personality  caused  it  to  take  deep 
root  into  the  whole  country.  But  Prince  Bismarck  was  a 
genius,  and  he  proved  it  by  the  manner  in  which  he  con- 
ducted the  two  great  wars  through  which  Germany  won 
her  unity.  They  were  cruel  but  not  ferocious  wars ;  they 
were  ruthless,  but  they  did  not  disgrace  civilisation,  nor 
did  Germany  blush  beneath  the  reprobation  of  a  shocked 
and  outraged  world,  as  now  she  has  cause  to  do. 

To  come  back  to  the  fate  of  the  Khedive  Abbas  Hilmi. 
This  unfortunate  victim  of  his  own  ambition  and  pre- 


Abbas  Hilmi  in  a  Dilemma         243 

sumption  did  not  experience  the  dismay  that  mifjht  have 
been  expected  when  he  heard  that  he  had  been  dis- 
possessed of  his  throne.  He  had  unbounded  confidence 
in  the  power  of  Turkey,  backed  by  Germany,  to  reinstate 
him,  and  he  confided  to  his  friends  that  he  was  not 
altogether  sorry  at  the  turn  that  events  had  taken,  because 
they  would  give  him  the  right,  when  he  was  back  again 
at  Cairo,  to  get  rid  of  his  troublesome  uncle,  Prince 
Hussein,  whose  usurpation  had  been  sanctioned  by  his 
enemy  England.  He  fully  believed  himself  to  be  a 
martyr,  and  the  German  and  Austrian  Cabinets  declared 
that  he  had  been  the  victim  of  his  honesty. 

In  Constantinople  his  conduct  was  warmly  approved, 
and  he  was  represented  to  the  population  as  one  who 
suffered  for  the  cause  of  Islam.  Nevertheless,  when  he 
wanted  to  settle  permanently — or  at  least  until  the  dawn 
of  better  days — in  his  palace  at  Constantinople,  he  was 
politely  told  that  his  presence  there  might  become  a 
source  of  embarrassment  to  the  Turkish  Government. 
He  was  offered  the  choice  of  two  alternatives  :  to  accept 
the  command  of  the  Turkish  corps  destined  to  march 
against  Suez,  or  else  to  travel  abroad.  Abbas  had  no 
intention  whatsoever  of  exposing  himself  to  the  dangers 
of  an  expedition,  though  he  w^as  fond  of  saying  that  he 
was  ready  to  shed  the  last  drop  of  his  blood  for  the  sake 
of  the  sacred  principles  of  Islam. 

The  ex-Khedive  then  decided  that  it  would  be  best 
to  go  to  Vienna,  where  he  received  a  warm  welcome  from 
Count  Berchtold  and  also  from  the  old  Emperor.     He 


244        The  Near  East  from  Within 

was  also  made  much  of  by  Viennese  Society.  But  when 
it  came  to  going  to  BerHn  it  was  hinted  to  Abbas  at  the 
German  Embassy  in  Vienna  that,  the  Emperor  not  being 
in  his  capital,  his  visit  had  better  be  postponed.  When 
the  ex-Khedive  offered  to  visit  William  II.  at  his  head- 
quarters in  the  field — where  already  two  Turkish  princes, 
nephews  of  the  Sultan,  had  been  affably  received — he 
was  again  discomfited. 

The  fact  was  that  the  Emperor  William  was  perfectly 
well  aware  that  the  ex-Khedive  would  not  hesitate  to  act 
toward  Germany  as  he  had  to  England,  and,  furthermore. 
Abbas  now  possessed  absolutely  no  personal  influence  over 
pubhc  opinion  in  Egypt.  The  ex-Khedive,  finding  him- 
self repulsed  by  the  very  person  whose  advice  he  had  been 
following  blindly,  wandered  in  the  south  of  Germany  and 
the  north  of  Italy.  Meanwhile  he  wrote  to  Enver  Pasha 
to  know  what  he  was  to  do.  Enver  Pasha  told  him  to 
return  to  Constantinople. 

Such  is  the  situation  as  it  presents  itself  at  the  moment 
of  writing  so  far  as  Turkey,  the  Balkans,  and  the  region 
of  the  Nile  are  concerned.  I  will  not  mention  the  various 
intrigues  that  are  steadily  going  on  in  Algeria,  Morocco, 
India,  and  wherever  Islam  is  the  prevailing  faith.  In  the 
great  struggle  the  German  Emperor  has  not  neglected 
one  single  chance  nor  hesitated  to  adopt  any  means,  so 
long  as  his  plans  were  forwarded.  Among  the  dupes 
whom  he  has  made  to  suffer  the  ex-Khedive  Abbas  Hilmi 
occupies  a  foremost  place ;  it  is  not  at  all  unlikely  that 
the  next  will  be  Enver  Pasha. 


An  Unburdened  Soul  245 

My  work  is  done.  I  have  tried  to  put  down  in  this 
book  all  that  I  know  and  much  that  I  suspect  concern- 
ing the  great  events  which  are  shaking  the  whole  world 
at  the  moment  I  write. 

I  shall  not  be  forgiven  for  having  revealed  what  I 
learned  on  the  subject  of  this  vast  conspiracy,  but  at 
least  I  have  the  comfort  of  an  unburdened  soul. 


INDEX 


Abbas  Hilmi,  Khedive,  26,  106  et  seq. 

and  Abdul  Hamid,  26,  110,  240 

and  Enver  Pasha,  113 

Austria's  views  of  his  deposition, 

243 

deposition  of,  239,  243 

general  mistrust  of,  113 

German  sympathy  at  his  deposi- 
tion, 243 

Germany's  conditions  to,  237,  238 

repulsed  by  William  II.,  244 

Abdul  Hamid,  Sultan,  1  et  seq. 

,  an  interview  with  the  German 

Emperor,  5-G,  8 

and  Abbas  Hilmi,  26,  108  et  seq., 

240 

and  his  brother  Mehmed  R6chad 

(afterwards  Mohammed  V.).  25,  39, 
41 

and  his  sister  M6diha  Sultane,  41 

et  seq. 

and    the    howling    dervishes    of 

Constantinople,  101 

and  Turkey's  part  in  the  Great 

War,  26 

as  politician,  3 

,  author's  impressions  of,  2 

,  Baron  von  Bieberstein  and,  9 

,  Baron  von  Wangenheim  and,  67 

degrades  Enver  Bey,  22 

,  deposition  of,  24,  33-4,  44 

,  Eastern  fatalism  of,  24 

frustrates  an  alliance  with  Ger- 
many, 93 

his  fear  of  assassination,  8,  23 

his  immense  wealth,  23,  24,  25, 

240 

,  his  love  of  money,  11,  23 

,  strained  relations  with  William 

II.,  43 
,  the  German  sympathies  of,  26 


Abdul  Hamid,  the  Imperial  harem  of, 

11 
Adrianople,  Turkey  and,  45,  46,  60,  77, 

184,  231,  232 
Albania,  230 

Albert  Edward,  Prince  of  Wales,  16 
Alexander,  King  of  Servia,  163  et  seq., 

179 

and  his  mother,  159  et  seq. 

assumes  conduct  of  Government, 

165 

meets  Madame  Maschin,  167 

murder  of,  146,  162-2,  170,  173 

Alexander,  Prince  of  Battenberg,  214, 

216 
Alexander  III.,  Tsar,  155,  158,  216 

and  Nicholas  I.  of  Montenegro, 

203 

and   the  ruler  of  Bulgaria,  216, 

220 

,  death  of,  221,  223 

Armenians,  the,  and  Russia,  84 
Ars^ne  Karageorgevitch,  Prince,  174 
Asia  Minor,  threatened  Russian  inva- 
sion of,  9 
Athens,  the  Court  life  at,  197 
Austria  annexes  Bosnia  and  Herzego- 
vina, 91,  131,  149,  208 
Austria,  Emperor  Francis  Joseph  of, 

91,  145,  220,  243 
Austrian  envoy,  the,  and  Queen  Draga» 

171 
Austria's   attitude    in    the    Bulgarian- 
Servian  War,  182 

B 

Bagdad   Railway,  the,   conceded   to 

the  Germans,  9 
Baksheesh,  24,  35,  52,  75 
Balkan  crisis,  the,  116 

problem,  the,  and  Germany,  194 

wars,  the,  37,  45,  57,  68,  213,  231 


247 


248 


Index 


Balkans,  the,  Russian  policy  in,  132 
Batoum,  bombardment  of,  by  Turks, 

237 
Battenberg,  Prince  Alexander  of,  214, 

216 

,  Prince  Francis  Joseph  of,  205 

,  Prince  Henry  of,  205 

Beatrice,  Princess,  marriage  of,  205 
Belgrade,  the  Archbishop  of,  157 
Berchtold,  Count,  133,  149 
,  welcomes  Abbas  Hilmi  in  Vienna, 

243 
Berlin  Congress,  the,  62 

Court,  the,  and  the  Quirinal,  206 

,  the  Tsar's  visit  to,  115 

Beylerbey,  Abdul  Hamid  at,  26,  48 
Bieberstein,  Baron  Marschall  von,  5,  9, 

81 

,  an  Imperial  recommendation  of 

Enver  Bey,  55 

and  Abdul  Hamid,  9  et  seq. 

and  Enver  Bey,  21,  55 

and  King  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria, 

91-2 

and    the    howling    dervishes    of 

Constantinople,  100  et  seq. 

and    the    plot    against    Mddiha 

Sultane,  43-4 

and  the  Young  Turk  party,  43 

,  appointed  to  Constantinople,  17, 

89,  111 
,  appointed   to   the    Embassy   in 

London,  46,  93 

,  death  of,  46,  93 

,  description  of,  93 

,  his  intimate  relations  with  Abbas 

Hilmi,  111 
,  his  relations  with  the  Sheikh-ul- 

Islam,  100 
,  his    successor    at    the    Sublime 

Porte,  67 

,  secret  allies  of,  10  et  seq. 

,  the   confidant   of    William    H., 

9-10 

warns  Abdul  Hamid   of  a   con- 
spiracy, 23 

Bismarck,   Prince,   and   German   mili- 
tarism, 242 

and  the  King  of  Roumanla,  124, 

128  et  seq. 


Bismarck  and  the  question  of  a  Rou- 
manian monarchy,  124,  128  et  seq. 

,  dismissal  of,  129 

,  his  contempt  for  the  Turk,  87 

Bompard,  M.  Louis,  95-7 

Boris,  Crown  Prince,  the  re-baptism  of, 
222  et  seq. 

Bosnia,  annexation  of,  91, 131, 149,  208 

Bouillon,  Godfrey  de,  the  Kaiser  and, 
73 

Bourbon-Parme,  Princess  Marie  Louise 
of,  218 

British  Government,  the,  and  the 
German  mission  to  Constantinople, 
234 

depose  Abbas  Hilmi,  239 

Brunswick,  the  Duke  of,  115,  133 
Bucharest,  author's  impressions  of,  136 

et  seq. 

,  peace  signed  at,  59,  183 

,  the  Treaty  of,  123,  138,  213 

Bulgaria  and  Adrianople,  45,  46 

and  Turkey,  64 

Bulgaria,  Crown  Prince  Boris  of,  222 

et  seq. 
Bulgaria,  King  Ferdinand  of,  58,  64, 67, 

91,  116,  119,  213  et  seq. 

,  the  Jesuits  in,  65 

,  war  with  Servia  and  Greece,  182 

Bulgarian  atrocities,  the,  99 
Byzantium.    (C/.  Constantinople). 


Carmen  Sylva.  (C/.  Elizabeth,  Queen 

of  Roumania) 
Carol,  King  of  Roumania,  116,  123  et 

seq. 
,  a  field-marshal  in  the  Russian 

army,  132 

,  a  letter  from  William  IL,  134 

,  advises    the    Kaiser    to    take    a 

"  soothing  mixture,"  144 

,  and  Bismarck,  124,  128  et  seq. 

,  and  WilUam  H.,  129  et  seq. 

,  author  visits,  140  et  seq. 

,  death  of,  125,  135 

,  his   efforts    to  avoid  the  Great 

War,  134 

,  his  financial  genius,  125 

,  speaks  his  mind,  142  et  seq. 


Index 


249 


Cetinje,  author's  visit  to,  207  et  seq. 
Charles  of  HolienzoUcrn,  Prince.    (C/. 

Carol,  King  of  Rouuiania) 
Christians  in  Turkey,  Russia  and  the, 

62  et  seq. 
— — ,  William  II.  and  the,  66 
Church  of  Rome,  the,  63,  65,  222  et  seq. 
Church    of   the   Holy   Sepulchre,   the, 

WilUam  II.  visits,  73-4 
Clementine,  Princess  of  Orleans,  214 

and  her  son,  Prince  Ferdinand, 

214  et  seq. 

and  the  German  Emperor,  220 

,  death  of,  219,  229 

,  her  religious  instincts  and  ideals, 

65,  214-15,  219,  221,  222  et  seq. 

,  the  virtual  ruler  of  Bulgaria,  218, 

229 

Committee  of  Union  and  Progress,  the, 
21,  232,  233.  (C/.  also  Enver  Bey 
and  Young  Turk  Party) 

Constantin,  Prince,  becomes  King  of 
the  Hellenes,  198 

,  held   responsible   for   defeat    of 

Greek  army,  196 

,  his  education,  194,  196 

,  marries  Princess  Sophie,  195 

,  strained  relations  with  his  father, 

196 

Constantinople,  Abbas  Hilmi's  depar- 
ture from,  243 

,  ambassadors  at,  17,  86  et  seq. 

,  espionage  in,  56 

,  German  influence  in,  80 

,  German  military  missions  to,  13, 

14,  45,  47,  61,  78,  158 

,  intrigue  in,  35  et  passim 

,  life  in,  28  et  seq, 

,  ministers  attacked  in  the  streets, 

58 

,  Russian  influence  in,  62  et  seq. 

,  Society  in,  29  et  seq. 

,  the  dancing  and  howling  der- 
vishes of,  100-1 

,  the  Diplomatic  Corps  in,  32 

,  the  Greek  Orthodox  Church  in, 

63 

,  the  Greek  Patriarch  of,  65,  222, 

225 

,  the  Roman  Qiurch  in,  63 


Constantinople,  the  old  walls  erected 
by  jQstinian,  33 

,  the  social  life  of  the  European 

colony  in,  34 

,  William  II.'s  journey  to,  88 

Conti,  Count,  Italian  Ambassador  at 
Constantinople,  11 

Cromer,  Lady,  109 

Cromer,  Lord,  the  English  Agent- 
General  in  Egypt,  106  et  seq. 

D 

Damad  FfiRiD  Pasha  Bouchati,  42 

Damad  Nedjib,  Pasha,  41-2 

Dancing  dervishes  of  Constantinople, 
the,  100 

Danilo,  Crown  Prince,  202 

Dardanelles  forts,  the,  Enver  Pasha's 
activities,  235 

De  Giers,  M.,  64,  67,  96,  233,  236 

,  and  the  Prusso-Turkish  alliance, 

68 

,  his  ideas  of  Moslem  friendship, 

69 

,  opposes  appointment  of  General 

von  Sanders,  69 

Denmark,  the  King  and  Queen  of,  197 

Diplomatists  at  the  Sublime  Porte,  86 
et  seq. 

Draga,  Queen,  an  anonymous  letter  to, 
172 

J  an  emissary  from  the  Kaiser,  169 

,  appointed  lady-in-waiting  to  ex- 
Queen  Natalie,  167 

,  divorced  from  her  first  husband, 

167 

,  marries  the  young  King  Alex- 
ander, 168  et  seq. 

,  murder  of,  146,  170,  173 

E 

Egypt,  Abbas  Hilmi,  Khedive  of,  26, 
106, 110, 113,  237,  238,  239,  240,  243, 
244 

,  Germany's  designs  on,  242 

,  her  future — if  Germany  vic- 
torious, 237-8 

,  Lord  Cromer  in,  106  et  seq. 

,  Lord  Kitchener  appointed  Agent 

in,  110,  111,  241 


250 


Index 


Egypt,  Sir  Eldon  Gorst  and,  110 

,  Sultan  Hussein  Kemal,  239 

,  Turkish  plans  for  attack  of,  237 

Elizabeth,  Queen  of  Roumania,  140  et 

seq. 

,  death  of  her  only  child,  140 

,  her  personality,  140 

,  King  Carol's  admiration  for,  141 

England  and  the  Suez  Canal,  107,  112, 

114.     (C/.  Suez  Canal) 
,  her  apathy  to  Teutonic  influence 

in  Turkey,  14 
Enver  Bey  (afterwards  Pasha),  38,  49, 

50,  113,  181,  232,  233 
,  a    ciphered    message    from    the 

Kaiser  to,  235 
— ■ — ,  a  flying  visit  to  Berlin,  84 
,  a  letter  of  recommendation  from 

the  German  Emperor,  55 
,  a  note  to  author,  85 

and  the  Turco-Slav  war,  77 

confers  with  Baron  von  Wagen- 

heim,  237 

,  his  activities  in  the  DardaneUes, 

235 

,  his    conspiracy    against    Abdul 

Hamid,  22,  55,  56 

,  his  faith  in  the  Turkish  army,  57 

,  his  feminine  conquests  in  Stam- 

boul,  56 

,  his  grudge  against  Russia,  59 

,  his  opinion  of  the  Turkish  army, 

53 

,  Marshal  von  Sanders*  co-opera- 
tion with,  79 

on  Abdul  Hamid,  52,  53,  54 

offers  his  services  to  the  Kaiser,  59 

,  poUtical  importance  of,  51 

re-organises  the  Turkish  army,  59 

,  Turkish     military     attache     at 

Berlin,  51 

,  von  Bieberstein  and,  21 

,  William  II.  and,  38,  55,  61 

(C/.  also  Young  Turk  Party) 

Essad  Eflendi.     (C/.  Sheikh-ul- Islam) 
Euxinograd,  the  Palace  of,  216 


Ferdinand,  King  of  Bulgaria,  58,  64, 
91,  116,  119,  213  et  seq. 


Ferdinand,  King,  a  reconciliation  with 
Mohammed  V.,  67 

,  and  the  invasion  of  Servia,  83 

,  and  the  Jesuits,  65 

,  and  the  reunion  of  the  National 

Bulgarian  Church  with  Rome,  223 
,  election  of,  as  Prince  of  Bulgaria, 

215 
,  his  desire  to  be  Emperor  of  a 

Christian  Turkey,  58,  64-5,  66,  219 
,  interview     with     the     Emperor 

Francis  Joseph,  220 

,    intrigues  against,  217 

,  marries  Princess  Marie  Louise, 

218 
,  re-organises  the  Bulgarian  army 

on  German  lines,  229 

,  visits  the  Tsar,  227,  228 

Ferdinand  of  Saxe-Coburg,  157,  176 

France  and  Turkey,  14  et  seq. 

Francis  Joseph,  Emperor  of  Austria,  91 

,  and  his  heir-presumptive,  145 

,  interview  with  Prince  Ferdinand 

of  Bulgaria,  220 
,  receives  Abbas  Hilmi  after  bis 

deposition,  243 
Francis  Joseph,  Prince  of  Battenberg, 

205 
Franco-Russian  agreement,  the,  17,  76 
Franz  Ferdinand,  Archduke,  92 

,  a  morganatic  marriage,  147 

at  Windsor  Castle,  148,  149 

,  his  friendship  with  King  Ferdi- 
nand of  Bulgaria,  145 

,  murder  of,  151,  162,  235 

,  strained  relations  with  William 

II.,  146 
,  visited  by  the  Kaiser,  122,  145 

et  seq. 
Frederick,  Archduke,  146 
Frederick  III.,  Emperor,  123 

,  death  of,  195 

,  marriage  of  his  daughter,  195 

Frederick,  Empress,  195,  196 


Garroni,  Marquis,  98 

George,  Crown  Prince  of  Servia,  177-8 

,  his  succession  renounced,  181 

George,  Duke  of  Leuchtenberg,  204 


Index 


251 


George,  King  of  Greece,  assassination 

of,  132,  182,  198,  199 

,  his  nationality,  194 

George  V.,  King,  visits  Berlin,  116,  117 
German  Crown  Prince,  the,  142,  144, 

191 
German  Emperor,  the.     (C/.  William 

II.) 
German  ex-detective,  a,  head  of  the 

Sultan's  secret  service,  8 
German  financial  circles  and  Turkey,  76 

intrigues  in  Turkey,  237  ei  passim 

militarism,  Bismarck  the  founder 

of,  242 

,  M.  Hartwig's  opinions  on, 

188 

military  missions  to  Turkey,  13, 

14,  45,  47,  61,  78,  158,  233,  234 

overtures  in  the  Near  East :    an 

intercepted  document,  81 

prestige  in  the  Near  East,  72  et 

seq. 

Germany,  a  factor  in  Turkish  politics, 

13 
,  an  alliance  with  Turkey,  81,  82 

and  the  annihilation  of  Russian 

influence  in  the  Near  East,  176 

and  the  Bagdad  Railway,  9 

and  the  Balkan  problem,  194 

and  the  Suez  Canal,  107, 111-112, 

114,  119,  120,  133,  148,  190,  237 

desires  alliance  with  Turkey,  8 

,  her  exports  to  Turkey,  80 

,  interference  in  internal  affairs  of 

Turkey,  233 

,  treaty  with  Turkey,  26,  92 

Ghika,  Prince,  161 

Ghika,  Princess,  161,  165,  167 

Goltz,  Marshal  von  der,  remodels  the 

Ottoman  army,  13,  45,  47,  78,  87,  234 
Gorst,  Sir  Eldon,  110 
Gortschakov,  Prince,  87 
Great  War,  the,  Germany's  main  reason 

for,  242 

,  its  cause,  151 

,  the  first  battles,  236 

Greco-Turkish  War,  the,  195 
Greece,  176 

and  Bulgaria,  64 

and  German  diplomacy,  193 


Greece  and  Turkey,  64 

,  rival  influences  in,  193  el  seq. 

,  the  war  with  Turkey,  14 

Greek  Christians,  the.  Count  Ignatieff 

and,  63-4 
Greek  Orthodox  Church,  the,  65,  222 

et  seq. 
Guentchitch,  M.,  67,  177,  182 

H 

Hartwiq,  M.,  Russian  Minister  in  Bel- 
grade, 183,  185  et  seq. 

,  death  of,  191 

,  his  biie-noire,  185 

,  his  character  study  of  William 

II.,  186-7 

H616ne,  Princess,  marriage  of,  205 

Henry,  Prince  of  Battenberg,  mar- 
riage of,  205 

Herzegovina,  annexation  of,  91,  131, 
149,  208 

Hohenberg,  the  Duchess  of,  122,  145, 
146,  150 

,  at  Windsor  Castle,  148,  149 

,  marries  Archduke  Franz  Fer- 
dinand, 147 

,  murder  of,  151,  162 

,  William  II.  and,  147  et  seq. 

Howling  dervishes  of  Constantinople, 
the,  100 

,  Abdul  Hamid  and,  101 

,  Bieberstein  and,  100  et  seq. 

Humbert,  King  of  Italy,  205 

Hussein  Kemal,  Sultan,  239 

I 

Ignatieff,  Count,  38,  63-4 

Isabella,  Archduchess,  146 

Islamism,  100  et  seq. 

Ismail,  Khedive,  239 

Italian   Royal   Family,  the,   relations 

with  the  Vatican,  205 
Italy,  King  Victor  Emmanuel  of,  205, 

206 
Italy,  the  Queen  of,  205 


Jeltsch,  Baron  Saurma  de,  89 
Jerusalem,  the  Kaiser's  cool  request,  74 
,  the  Kaiser's  visit  to,  73 


252 


Index 


Jesuits,  the,  65,  147,  214,  219,  221,  222, 

225 
Justinian,  Byzantian  walls  of,  33 
Jutta,  Duchess  of  Mecklenburg-Strelitz, 

202 

K 

Karageorgevitch  dynasty,  the,  152, 

174  et  seq. 
Kiel,  the  British  squadron  at,  234,  235 
Kitchener,  Lord,  110,  111,  241 
Konopischt,  the  German  Emperor  at, 

145  et  seq. 

L 

Latin  and  Greek  Churches,  the  ques- 
tion of  reunion  of,  222  et  seq. 

Ledochowski,  Cardinal,  225 

Leo  XIIL,  Pope,  224-5 

Lichnowsky,  Prince  (German  Am- 
bassador in  London),  46,  232 

Livadia,  the  Tsar  visits,  69 

Lobanofl,  Prince,  64,  223 

M 

Majoresco,  M.  T.,  138,  139 
Mallet,  Sir  Louis,  97,  236 
Margherita,  Queen  of  Italy,  205 
Marie   Louise,   Princess   of    Bourbon- 

Parme,  218,  224,  228 
,  and  the  re-baptism  of  her  son, 

Prince  Boris,  224-5 

,  death  of,  228 

Mary,  Queen,  at  the  wedding  of  the 

Duke  and  Duchess  of  Brunswick,  115 
Maschin,  Colonel,  167 
Maschin,  Madame  Draga.    (C/.  Draga, 

Queen) 
Mecklenburg-Strelitz,  the  Duchess  of, 

202 
M6diha  Sultane,  Princess,  41,  42 

,  Enver  Bey  and,  56 

Mehmed  R6chad  Khan.    (C/.  Moham- 
med v..  Sultan) 
Metternich,  Count,  46 
Milan,  King  of  Servla,  146,  152 

,  abdication  of,  158 

,  and    the    marriage    of    his    son 

Alexander,  168 
,  as  intermediary    for    Germany, 

158 


Milan,  King  of  Servia,  divorces  Queen 

Natalie,  157 
,  interview    with    his    son    King 

Alexander,  165 
,  reorganises  the  army  on  German 

methods,  157 
,  reunited  to  Queen  Natalie,  159, 

164 
,  unhappy  domestic  relations  of, 

153  et  seq. 
Mohammed  V.,  Sultan,  37  et  seq. 
,  Abdul  Hamid  and,  26 

and  Enver  Bey,  46 

and  his  sister,  M6diha  Sultane,  41 

et  seq.,  46 

and  the  Moslems,  100 

and  William  IL,  47 

,  appearance  of,  38 

,  author's  conception  of  his  per- 
sonality, 49 

,  election  of,  25 

,  his  Grand  Vizier  assassinated,  46 

,  his  relations   with   his   brother, 

Abdul  Hamid,  25,  39,  41 

proclaims  a  Holy  War,  104 

,  reconciliation  with  King  Fer- 
dinand, 67 

reviews  regiments  off  to  the  front, 

46 

visits  the  deposed  Abdul  Hamid, 

41,  49 

Moltke,  General,  158,  235 
Montebello,  Count  de,  French  Ambas- 
sador at  Petrograd,  15 
Montenegro,  176 
— — ,  a  subsidy  from  the  Tsar,  204 

becomes  a  kingdom,  211 

declares  war  on  Germany,  212 

,  King  Nicholas  of,  201  et  seq. 

,  the  failure  of  German  intrigue  in, 

201 

,  union  of  people  and  ruler  in,  207 

,  wars  with  Turkey,  203 

Moors,  the,  William  H.  and,  75 
Morocco,  William  H.  at,  74 

N 

Naples,  Prince  of.   (C/.   Victor  Em- 
manuel) 
Natalie,  Queen  of  Servia,  153  et  seq. 


Index 


253 


Natalie,  Queen  of  Servia,  and  her  son, 
159  el  seq. 

,  Belgrade's  enthusiastic  welcome 

to,  159 

,  divorced  from  King  Milan,  157 

,  her  son  kidnapped,  155 

ineffectually    opposes    her    son's 

marriage,  168 

,  reconciliation  with  King  Milan, 

159,  164 
National  Bulgarian  Church,  the,  222, 

223 
Nazli,  Princess,  109 
Nelidoff,  M.,  64 
Nicholas  I.,  King  of  Montenegro,  201 

,  author  received  by,  207 

,  his  connection  with  Russia,  202 

,  his  daughters,  204,  205 

,  his  influence  over  the  Slav  races, 

201  et  seq. 
,  the  opinion  of  the  Tsar  Alex- 
ander III.  regarding,  203 

,  visits  WilUam  II.,  211 

Nicholas  I.,  Tsar  of  Russia,  and  the 

mutiny  of  1848,  157 
Nicholas  II.,  Tsar  of  Russia,  66,  67 

,  a    holograph    letter    from    the 

Kaiser,  117  et  seq. 

,  accession  of,  221 

,  and  King  Carol  of  Roumania,  132 

,  and  the  German  Emperor,  115  e/ 

seq. 

,  and   the    re-baptism    of    Prince 

Boris,  223  et  seq. 
,  convinced    of    the    pacific    dis- 
positions of  the  Kaiser,  234 

,    his   reply   to   the    Kaiser,    120 

et  seq. 

,  suggests      arbitration     in      the 

Balkan  crisis,  121 

,  visits  Constanza,  134 

Nicolaievitch,  Grand  Duke  Peter,  204 
Nobel  Prize,  the,  187 
Nubar  Pasha,  107 

O 

Obrenovitch  dynasty,  the,  152 
Odessa,  Turkish  bombardment  of,  237 
Olga,  Grand  Duchess,  133,  134 
Olga,  Queen  of  Greece,  195,  198 


Pallavicini,  Margrave,  94 

Parnic,  the  exiled  Duke  of,  218 

Pashitch,  M.,  67,  154,  160,  161,  170  et 
seq.,  176-7,  178,  179,  181,  182 

Pera,  2,  3,  28,  et  seq.  (C/.  Constanti- 
nople) 

Perotes,  the,  28  et  seq. 

Peter  Karageorgevitch,  Prince,  171 

,  elected  king,  173 

,  marriage  of  his  daughter,  181 

,  proclamation  of,  175 

,  Servia  under  his  rule,  174  et  seq. 

Petersburg,     {See  Petrograd) 
Petrograd,  62 

,  King  Nicholas's  frequent  visits 

to,  204,  205 

,  the  British  Fleet  entertained  at, 

235 

,  the  French  ambassador  at,  15 

,  the  Holy  Synod  in,  222 

Pourtal^s,  Count,  117,  233 
Prussia,  the  military  party  in,  142 

Q 

QuiRiNAL,  the,  206 

R 

Radolin,  Prince,  227 

Radoslavoff,  M.,  215 

Radowitz,  Baron,  German  ambassador 
at  Constantinople,  87-89 

,  transferred  to  Madrid,  89 

Radowitz,  Baroness,  88 

Roman  Church,  the,  65 

,  and  the  question  of  the  Bul- 
garian Church,  222  et  seq. 

Rome,  Pope  Leo  XIII.,  224-5 

Roon,  Field-Marshal,  158 

Roumania,  176 

and  Russia,  130  et  seq. 

,  Crown  Prince  Ferdinand  of,  136 

et  seq. 

,  German  intrigue  against,  133  et 

passim 

,  King  Carol  of,  116,  123  e/  seq. 

,  Queen  Ehzabeth  of,  140  et  seq. 

,  the  Crown  Princess  of,  136,  138 

Russia,  a  secret  understanding  with 
Servia,  67,  183 


254 


Index 


Russia,  Alexander   III.,  Tsar  of,  155, 

158,  203,  216,  220,  221,  223 
Russia  and  Christianity,  66 

and  Germany,  15  ei  passim 

and  Roumanian  130  et  seq. 

and  Servia,  153  et  seq. 

as  absolute  mistress  of  the  Black 

Sea,  118,  119 

,  Enver  Bey  and,  59 

,  Nicholas  I.,  Tsar  of,  157,  211 

,  Nicholas  II.,  Tsar  of,  66,  67,  115, 

117,  120,  121,  132,  134,  221,  223  el 
seq. 

,  the  traditional  enemy  of  Turlicy, 

50 
Russian  Government  warned  of  Ger- 
man intrigues  in  Turkey,  19 

influence  in  Constantinople,  62  et 

seq. 

support  for  Servia,  67 

Russo-Roumanian  alliance,   failure  of 

the,  134 


Sadowa,  the  battle  of,  124 

St.  Sophia,  the  Cathedral  of,  an  ancient 
prophecy  regarding,  197 

Salonika,  Abdul  Hamid,  imprisoned  at, 
24,  25,  26 

,  King  George  of  Greece  assas- 
sinated at,  132,  182,  198,  199 

Sanders,  General  (afterwards  Marshal) 
Liman  von,  26,  47,  61,  69,  233,  234, 
236 

,  his  audience  with  the  Kaiser,  78 

,  his  part  in  the  Great  War,  237 

,  personality  of,  78 

San  Stefano,  the  Peace  of,  64 

Sarajevo,  the  tragedy  of,  151,  235 

Sazonov,  M.,  135,  192,  233 

Sch6b6ko,  M.,  131,  132 

Scutari,  fall  of,  211 

Secret  agents,  a  prince  of,  8 

police  in  Turkey,  7 

Selamlik,  the  ceremony  of  the,  1 
Serb,  an  astute,  19 

Servia,  an  understanding  with  Russia, 
67,  183 

and  Germany,  176 

and  Russia,  153  et  seq. 


Servia,  Crown  Prince  George,   177-8, 

181 

,  imprisonment  of  Ministers  in,  159 

,  in  the  'Eighties,  152  et  seq. 

,  invasion   of,   suggested   by   the 

Kaiser,  83 

,  King  Alexander  of,  158  et  seq. 

,  KingMilanof,  146, 152, 153,157, 

158,  164,  165,  168 

,  Queen  Natalie  of,  153  el  seq. 

,  under  King  Peter,  174  et  seq. 

Servian  army  remodelled  on  German 

lines,  157 

army     remodelled     on    Russian 

methods,  158 

Sheikh-ul- Islam,  the,  51,  99  et  seq.,  102 
et  seq. 

and  William  II.,  103 

,  his  attitude  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Great  War,  103 

,  his  dislike  of  Abdul  Hamid,  102 

Slav    races,    the    influence    of     King 

Nicholas  over,  201  et  seq. 
Smolna,  the  Convent  of,  204 
Sofia,  the  Archbishop  of,  225,  227 

,  a  message  from  the  Pope,  225-6 

Sophie,  Princess  (now  Queen  of  Greece), 

176,  195 
Stamboul,   author's   visit  to,   and   his 
conclusions,  48 

,  loss  of  Russian  prestige  in,  62  et 

seq. 
StamboulofI,  M.,  215,  217 

,  murder  of,  218 

Suez,  Turkish  aggression  on,  241 
Suez  Canal,  the,  German  designs  on, 
107,  111-12,  114,  119,  120,  133,  148, 
190,  237 

T 

Tewfik  Pasha,  106  ei  seq.,  239 
Triple  Alliance,  the,  Servia  and,  156 

,  Turkey  and,  92 

Triple  Entente,  the,  131-2 
Turkey,  a  change  for  the  better,  37 

,  an  alliance  with  Germany,  81,  82 

,  an  ex-German  detective  in  Abdul 

Hamid's  household,  8 

and  the  Balkans,  237 

and  the  Great  War,  230  et  seq. 


Index 


255 


Turkey  at  war  with  Montenegro,  203 

,  bribery   and   corruption   in,   24, 

35,  52 

declares  war  against  the  Allies,  26 

,  German  financial  circles  and,  76 

,  German  military  missions  to,  13^ 

14,  45,  47,  61,  78,  158,  233,  234 

,  loss  of  French  prestige  in,  15 

■ ,  morality  in,  35 

,  secret  reorganisation  of,  20 

,  Sultan  of,  his  mission  to  greet 

the  Tsar,  69 

,  Sultans  of.     (C/.  Abdul  Hamid 

and  Mohammed  V.) 

,  treaty  with  Germany,  26,  92 

,  war  with  Greece,  14 

,  war  with  Servia  and  Bulgaria,  99 

Turkish  army,  the,  remodelled  on  Ger- 
man lines,  13,  45,  47,  61,  78,  158, 
233,  234 

politics  under  Mohammed  V.,  26 

ships  bombard  the  Caucasian  lit- 
toral, 236 

Turks,  their  political  faith,  99  et  seq. 
,  their  tolerance  in  religious  mat- 
ters, 99 


Vatican,  the,  and  the  Italian  Royal 

Family,  205 
Venizelos,  M.,  213 

Victor  Emmanuel,  King  of  Italy,  206 
and  an  alliance  between  Germany 

and  Montenegro,  206 

,  wedding  of,  205 

Victor  Emmanuel.     ( Cf.  Naples,  Prince 

of.) 
Victoria,  Empress,  wife  of  Frederick 

III.     (See   Frederick,   Empress,) 
Victoria,  Queen  of  Great  Britain  and 

Ireland,  205  1 
Villebois,  Dr.  van  der  Does  de,  98 

W 

Wangenheim,  Baron  von,  67,  93-4, 

97 

,  confers  with  Enver  Pasha,  237 

Warrender,  Admiral  Sir  George,  234 
Wied,     Princess     Elisabeth     of.     (Cf. 

Elizabeth  of  Roumania.) 


William  II.,  German  Emperor,  a  holo- 
graph letter  to  the  Tsar,  117  cf  scq. 

,  a  quarrel  with  his  sister,  Princess 

Sophie,  195 

,  accession  of,  87 

,  an  indiscreet  speech  by,  75 

,  an  interview  with  Abdul  Hamid, 

5-6,  8 

,  and  Abdul  Hamid,  43 

,  and  Baron  von  Bieberstcin,  9  et 


seq. 


and  Enver  Bey,  38,  55,  61 
,  and  King  Alexander  of  Servia, 

166 
,  and  King  Carol  of  Roumania,  129 

et  seq. 

,  and  King  Milan  of  Servia,  156 

,  and  Mohammed  V.,  47 

,  and  Moslem  Egypt,  106  et  seq. 

and   the   Christian    communities 

of  Constantinople,  66 

and    the    deposition    of    Abdul 

Hamid,  22 

,  and  the  Duchess  of  Hohenberg, 

147  et  seq. 
,  and      the     ex-Khedive     Abbas 

Hilmi,  244 
,  and  the  German  Crown  Prince, 

142,  144,  191 
,  and  the  inevitability  of  war  with 

Russia,  76 
,  and  the  marriage  of  the  Prince  of 

Naples,  205-6 

,  and  the  second  Balkan  War,  67 

,  and  the  Tsar  of  Russia,  115  et 

seq. 

,  and  the  welfare  of  the  Turk,  9 

,  and  the  Young  Turk  party,  18 

,  at  Konopischt,  145  et  seq. 

,  at  Morocco,  75 

— ,  desires  the  cession  to  Germany 

of  Jerusalem,  74 

,  his  beUef  in  Turkey,  242 

,  his  charges  against  England,  118 

et  seq. 
- — ,  his  hatred  of  Lord  Cromer,  108 

,  his  intense  patriotism,  75 

— ,  his  opinion  of  Abdul  Hamid,  16 
— ,  his  regret  at  fall  of  Adrianople, 

77 


256 


Index 


William  II.,  German  Emperor,  his 
relations  witli  his  son,  142,  144 

,  his  relationship  with  the  reign- 
ing house  of  Greece,  194 

,  holograph     letters      to     Abdul 

Hamid,  13,  18 

,  invites    a    British    squadron    to 

Kiel,  235 

,  relations  with  King  Ferdinand,  92 

,  snubbed  by  Tsar  Alexander  III., 

220-1 

,  suggests  invasion  of  Servian  ter- 
ritory, 83 

,  the    keeper    of   Abdul   Hamid's 

private  purse,  24-5 

,  the  real  ruler  of  Turkey,  26 

,  visits  Norway,  235 

,  vlsits'^the  Holy  Land,  73 


"William    II.,  German  Emperor,  visits 

the  Sultan,  66 
"Women,  emancipation  of,  7,  41,  42 


YiLDiz  Kiosk,  1,  7,  8 

,  German  secret  aUies  in,  10 

Young  Turk  party,  the,  7,  20,  38 

,  Abdul  Hamid  and,  20-1 

,  depose     and     imprison     Abdul 

Hamid,  24,  25 

,  the  leader  of.     ( Cf.  Enver  Bey) 

,  William  II.  and,  18 

,  von  Bieberstein  and,  43 


ZicHY,  Count  Eugene,  156, 157, 165-6 
Zinovieff,  M.,  64 


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